Ryman justifies board fee hike

Ryman Healthcare directors are asking shareholders for a rise in the pool of fees from $828,000 paid last year to $985,000 – a proposal that has shocked a shareholder concerned about income inequality.

Divided up, the eight directors would receive about $110,000 each while the chairman generally receives twice that amount.

Ryman directors have other jobs or directorships – for example, Jo Appleyard is a practising lawyer, and chairman Dr David Kerr has seven other directorships.

But their pay is modest compared with Fonterra directors who were given rises this year to $175,000 each, with $430,00 for the chairman John Wilson, from $165,000 and $405,000 previously.

Proposed fee rises come against the background of annual inflation at just above 1 per cent.

Another comparison is with the average Kiwi annual salary, which Statistics New Zealand said was a little more than $50,000.

Ryman Healthcare spokesman David King said the company’s fees rise was not the 18 per cent assumed by some shareholders.

The current pool was $910,000 but Ryman had one director fewer last year and therefore only $828,000 was actually paid out, and this was the figure that led some shareholders to conclude an 18 per cent rise was being requested.

King said the rise was only 8 per cent, and the last rise was two years ago – making the latest fee request equivalent to just 4 per cent a year.

Shareholders Association chief executive Michael Midgley said his members were discussing proposed director fee increases on a case by case basis and would issue a report on Ryman in a few days.