Telecom's $7 million man

Telecom boss Paul Reynolds' $7 million-plus salary package included nearly $250,000 for travel and accommodation.

The engineers union has branded Mr Reynolds' pay package for the year to June 30, 2009, as an example of corporate greed. It said he earned as much in one year as 165 linesmen.

In addition to $4.8m in salary and incentives paid mostly in cash during the year to June, Mr Reynolds was set to make up to an additional $2.1m from rights to free shares granted in September, a spokesman confirmed yesterday.

Mr Reynolds received $243,950 in "special payments" for personal travel home to Britain and accommodation payments under his employment agreement.

The share rights were designed to reward him for Telecom's long-term performance. He is not allowed to sell the shares until Telecom meets performance targets.

Telecom chairman Wayne Boyd said Mr Reynolds had assembled an executive team with world-class expertise. "The global marketplace for executives of this calibre is an intensely competitive one. It is essential our remuneration is competitive to attract and retain top executives."

Telecom's top seven executives received $20.3m during the year to June despite a 44 per cent fall in company profits to $398m.

The rewards were "fair recognition for the outstanding job they have done as leaders", Mr Boyd said.

Mr Reynolds' remuneration angered the Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union, which is fighting attempts by network arm Chorus to farm out maintenance work to self-employed contractors.

National secretary Andrew Little said it could "not be more insulting to the hundreds of highly skilled lines engineers whose lives are being turned upside down".

Two-thirds of Telecom's 8535 staff earn less than $100,000 a year. The EPMU said the changes at Chorus could see some contractors take home less than the minimum wage.