Pay boost for Pearson CFO

Pearson CFO Rona Fairhead saw her pay rocket to nearly one million pounds in 2004 – despite the group suffering a ‘static’ year.

Link: Pearson IFRS boost ignored

Fairhead pocketed £907,000 in 2004, compared with £493,000 in 2003. The leap in earnings came from a half-million pound performance-related bonus.

However, the business, which includes the Penguin Group and the Financial Times under its umbrella, had a tough 12 months.

According to its annual report, adjusted operating profit for the group fell to £455m, from the 2003 restated figure of £490m – before goodwill amortisation. However, Pearson revealed that operating profit had increased, on an underlying basis, by 5%.

Statutory profit was £171m, up £19m, however, this increase was largely as a result of lower goodwill amortisation and a reduced interest charge – but a weakening dollar went some way to negate this, by lowering this figure.

Fairhead held 12,710 ordinary Pearson shares on 31 December 2004, according to the report, worth £83,123, while shares issued if bonus conditions are met and other long-term incentive plans amount to a whopping £3m.