Manchester Airport Greedy Bosses
£863,000 for airport chiefs who cut pay
DIRECTORS at cost-cutting Manchester Airport have accepted big pay rises while axing jobs and slashing workers' wages.
Financial packages for airport directors rocketed by 86 per cent from £465,000 to a total of £863,000 in one year, according to accounts leaked to the MEN.
The seven directors are spearheading a major cost-cutting drive which has seen 140 security jobs go earlier this year and remaining staff taking a 30 per cent wages cut.
Dave McCall, of the Transport and General Workers' Union, said: "It's disgraceful when our members have suffered massive cuts in their pay.
"And the airport's justification for this has been their own financial plight, which clearly is untrue. They only made less money than they might have because they secured three other airports.
"At the same time they felt themselves financially stable enough to increase total payments for directors from £465,000 to £863,000."
The directors' total pay package for 2001-2 spiralled through salary increases and the creation of two further director posts. The biggest earner was chief executive Geoff Muirhead, who was paid £270,000,according to the airport accounts.
Strikes
Mr Muirhead did waive his right to a bonus. The dispute over job cuts resulted in a series of damaging strikes and involved airport bosses paying out £20m in 'sweeteners' to persuade some security staff to accept controversial new contracts which included longer hours.
In the latest phase of cost-cutting, employees in the airport's security-pass office and control room have been asked to take a pay cut while managers are also looking at more savings in the 70-strong car parks section, where unions fear jobs and wages will be axed for a new automated system.
Managers say their aim is to reduce landing fees and entice new airlines, including budget carriers, who say Manchester is too expensive.
Managers also say they have to tackle a huge slump in passenger numbers which saw profits slump to £2m in the last financial year. They blame September 11.
But the accounts also show the airport's profits were also massively affected by the purchase of airports at Humberside, Bournemouth and East Midlands, which resulted in interest payments totalling nearly £40m last year.
Today, Coun Brian Harrison, chairman of the airport board, confirmed the rises for the directors but would not comment on "personal details".
An airport board member defended the rises by pointing out that other airport groups paid far higher salaries to their top people.
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