Dunelm under fire over 'excessive' executive pay

(Sharecast News) - Homewares retailer Dunelm is finding itself the target of a shareholder advisory organisation for the "excessive" pay package enjoyed by its chief executive.
The Evening Standard said that Pensions and Investment Research Consultants (PIRC) was urging its clients to vote against Dunelm's remuneration package at the next annual general meeting.

It came after £3.4m in bonuses were awarded to CEO Nick Wilkinson, leading to a quadrupling of his pay to more than £4m this year.

"The change in the CEO total pay over the last five years are [sic] not considered in line with the company's financial performance over the same period," the Standard quoted PIRC as saying.

"The ratio of the CEO's pay compared to average employee pay is considered unacceptable, standing at 66:1."

Additionally, PIRC pointed out that Dunelm's finance director Laura Carr had pocketed £2.5m, following a£2m bonus.

The retailer responded, saying that its remuneration policy was centered around its "long-term strategic goal" of "delivering value for shareholders and other stakeholders".

"Management remuneration is performance-related", Dunelm said.

At the close on Wednesday, shares in Dunelm were up 1.89% at 1,351p.