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Wessex Water grants CEO above-inflation pay increase despite bonus ban
Ruth Jefferson’s pay rose 14% to a £670,000 base salary in October, lifting her full year remuneration to £791,000 after pension and other benefits, even as the company expected to be caught by a 2025 bonus ban tied to sewage pollution and environmental metrics.
Wessex Water has awarded its chief executive an above-inflation pay increase even though the firm was effectively heading into a bonus ban linked to sewage pollution, according to the Guardian Business. CEO Ruth Jefferson received a 14% base salary increase in October, moving from £590,000 to £670,000, the outlet reported, citing accounts published this month.
The outlet said Jefferson’s full pay packet reached £791,000 for the year once pension and other benefits were included. The company’s increase also outpaced the 3.5% pay given to workers and would put the executive at about 18 times the median employee pay level.
The bonus ban was introduced by the UK government for companies responsible for serious pollution, or those that failed financial tests, starting in 2025, the Guardian Business added. Wessex Water said it expected to fall foul of the ban, particularly in relation to environmental and operational metrics.
The report also cited similar scrutiny at another water provider, Anglian Water, where the chief executive received a £500,000 retention payment despite a bonus ban. In Anglian’s case, the payment was made by its parent company and described as not linked to performance, with the firm saying the funds would otherwise have gone to shareholders until January 2027.