Sainsbury’s chief executive Mike Coupe’s total pay packet has surged by 46 per cent ahead of the Big 4 retailer’s proposed £12 billion merger with Asda.
Coupe’s pay came in at £3.4 million in the last financial year, boosted by £1 million worth of long-term share awards and a £427,000 bonus for hitting financial targets.
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His salary has also gone up two per cent for the next financial year, in line with other Sainsbury’s head office staff, with his salary now standing at £962,297.
His pay rise comes after he clashed with over 100 cross-party MPs and unions over plans to introduce pay changes for store staff from September this year, which features an increase in the hourly rate from £8 to £9.20 per hour, while paid breaks, bonuses and premium pay on Sundays would no longer be granted.
Meanwhile, Sainsbury’s Argos chief executive John Rogers has also enjoyed a pay rise, with his total package surging 38 per cent to £2.2 million.
“Mike and other executives were not awarded an annual bonus last year as the business did not hit its targets,” a Sainsbury’s spokesman said.
“The business has hit a number of targets this year, including increasing profit, which is why we have paid a bonus to eligible colleagues across the group.”
Sainsbury’s merger with Walmart-owned Asda is slated to be complete by next year.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) recently confirmed it was one step closer to commencing a full-blown probe into the proposed mega merger, which would create a grocery giant that is bigger than Tesco in market share.
However, it’s expected that Sainsbury’s and Asda would be forced to sell stores to satisfy CMA concerns around the proposed deal.
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