Joe Duffy turned down 'much greater' salary at Newstalk

In an Irish Examiner Weekend interview, Joe Duffy said he had received a “very significant offer from Newstalk”. Photo: Moya Nolan

Joe Duffy, presenter of RTÉ’s Liveline, has revealed that five years ago he turned down an offer from rival independent station Newstalk “much greater” than his current salary at the State broadcaster, which was €392,494 in 2019.

In an Irish Examiner Weekend interview, Mr Duffy said he had received a “very significant offer from Newstalk”, and he and his wife, June, had several meetings with Newstalk and had met with its then owner, billionaire Denis O’Brien.

Mr Duffy said he had ultimately turned down an “absolutely incredible” offer because, he said, “I believe in RTÉ [and] I believe in public service”.

Defending his salary, currently the third-highest in RTÉ, Duffy said he is employed as a contractor, and as such he had negotiated his salary “fair and square”, adding that he knows that he is well-paid, but he never encounters “begrudgery” himself.

“I just know from where my own family came from, I’m well-paid … [but when] I used to go up to Ballyfermot once a week, it was never once said to me.

“In fact, people say ‘Fair play to you, why shouldn’t you? If other people are getting it at that level, why shouldn’t you?’” In 2019, Mr Duffy was paid €392,494, making him the station’s third highest earner behind Ryan Tubridy, on €495,000, and Ray D’Arcy, on €450,000.

Mr Duffy, who this year turned 65, but who as a contractor is not covered by RTÉ’s mandatory requirement to retire at that age, acknowledged that while his future as a public service broadcaster ultimately depends upon RTÉ and upon the public, he could not currently contemplate retiring.

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In a statement to the Irish Examiner, an RTÉ spokesperson reiterated the station’s claim that it had, over the past year, achieved savings of 15% in the salaries of its top earners, but declined to comment on speculation that these savings had occurred mainly as a result of the death in January 2020 of Marian Finucane, and the retirement in May 2020 of Sean O’Rourke.

In 2019, Ms Finucane earned €358,013, and Mr O’Rourke earned €327,988.

In figures covering annual salaries published this week, RTÉ revealed that of its 1,866 employees, more than half earned €60,000 or less, with the average salary €60,753.

Twenty-two staff earned between €150,001 and €250,000, 95 earned between €100,001 and €150,000, and 176 between €80,001 and €100,000.

Some 554 RTÉ employees earned between €60,001 and €80,000 in 2020, 745 earned between €40,001 and €60,000, and 274 earned €40,000 or less per annum.

RTÉ’s spokesperson said it does not calculate the median salary (the salary at the midway point on a list beginning with the lowest earner and ending with the highest).

RTÉ declined to comment on the suggestion that RTÉ’s median annual salary might be lower than the average figure, as the median would not be skewed by salaries at the higher end.