Executive directors' pensions 'worth 34 times' those of other employees

Research published today shows executive directors at Irish companies have pension funds worth an average of 34 times that of other employees.

According to the study, which was carried out by Gerard Hughes from Trinity College Dublin, the average value of an executive director's pension is €4.1m.

The findings will be presented at a major ESRI conference on pensions today.

Business journalist Ian Guider said Gerard Hughes examined the accounts of 48 large companies in Ireland.

"He's looked at all these companies and said these are extremely generous contributions, and not only that - if you're an ordinary worker, you make most of the contributions yourself, whereas if you're on the executive level team the company makes it for you," he said.

"If you're an employee, you get 7% paid for you by the company, but if you're an executive director, 26% of your pension comes from your employer."