SMRT cuts CEO’s pay by nearly 20%

SMRT, Singapore's public transport operator, has announced a salary cut for its chief executive officer, Desmond Kuek.

His compensation was recently released in the company’s annual report.

Kuek's current basic salary is $830,955, while his variable performance pay is $1,040,759, making a total of $1,871,714.

This is a decrease from the $2.31 million he earned the year before.

An article from The Straits Times reported that Kuek's ex-compensation package had been the biggest the corporation has offered any of its chief executive officers.

SMRT has not commented on why Kuek's pay was cut this year.

However, the article stated that last year the firm had defended Kuek's record salary. The firm had said his salary was compared against the salaries of CEOs at peer companies.

In the past, the company has found it difficult to renew ageing operating assets to improve service reliability.

In the article, HR practitioner Alex Yaw, managing partner of headhunter Team Savant, said “Some may link it to the recent mishaps and service outages, but I think it is more in line with market sentiment and company performance. It is still a very decent salary.”

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