Executive pay in the industry superannuation sector came under the spotlight at the Conference of Major Superannuation Funds 2011(CMSF) event on the Gold Coast this week.
Employee and employer trustees have become concerned about the level of executive remuneration in industry funds, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) assistant secretary Tim Lyons said on a panel session.
"We don't want to end up seeing higher and higher pays in the industry [industry superannuation funds]. We think it is important to put a chop in the wheel before super executives end up with million dollar salaries," Lyons said.
Lyons' comments follow an article he wrote on Monday in the Australian Financial Review outlining concerns over the disclosure of executive remuneration in industry superannuation funds.
"It is troubling that only about one-third of industry and like funds disclose the remuneration received by directors in their annual report. Very few make specific disclosures about CEO [chief executive] pay," the article said.
At CMSF, Lyons said the industry should look at the way not-for-profit companies pay their executives.
"We could look at what measures not-for-profit companies use to place limits on executive remuneration," Lyons said.
HESTA chief executive Anne-Marie Corboy said that superannuation funds may represent different industries, but all funds operate in the financial services sector.
"We have to pay according to certain standards in financial services in order to attract and retain the right staff. This means pay levels may be higher than in the industries we operate," Corboy said.
The disclosure of trustee remuneration is part of the new set of governance guidelines for not-for-profit funds developed by the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST).
Launched at the CMSF conference, the guidelines include a range of recommendations including boards to disclose their remuneration policies.
"Superannuation directors and chief executives in the not-for-profit sector would never be paid the same high levels that are paid to directors and chief executives in listed companies," AIST chief executive Fiona Reynolds said.
