MADISON, Wis. - Salaries for 2008 for credit unions CEOs rose 7%, despite the current shaky economy, according to the 2008 CUES Executive Compensation Survey.
The survey showed that other credit union executives-EVPs, COOs, CFOs, CLOs, branch executives and CUSO executives-are being paid more this year, too-7.9% since last year. CUSO executives topped this list at more than 12%.
The CUES survey, administered by enetrix, in Madison, Wis., a provider of online survey services and e-commerce solutions, was based on data supplied by more than 800 credit unions. Seventy percent of credit unions surveyed also provided data in last year's survey allowing for a more accurate measurement of comparison, said Charlie Carlson, president and CEO of enetrix.
‘Extraordinary' And ‘Powerful'
Data is collected throughout the entire year for this survey, and then each year "we take a snapshot and compare it to 12 months earlier," he explained, noting that they have a lot of "repeaters every year. That makes it extraordinary," Carlson said. "Because it's a matched sample, it's very powerful."
Carlson said he wasn't surprised to see that credit unions' executive salaries continued to grow despite the troubled economy because "credit unions have been very successful organizations," he said. "Also, there is always a demand for top-grade leadership. It's a competitive market."
Carlson added that there is a positive correlation between the pay and growth in the credit union industry. "Historically, pay is low compared to other financial industries," he said, "but pay is steadily catching up. The gap in base pay is being closed."
In the $500 to $1 billion asset range, credit unions are paying more on average for CEO base salaries than banks, however banks are on top when bonuses are added. Although bonuses are still small relative to the private sector, credit unions' bonuses are also steadily growing.
Closing The Gap
The next place for credit unions to look toward closing that gap is in long-term incentives, Carlson said, including retirement packages. "Most credit unions-when examining that-are finding a problem," he said. "We've gotten pretty good about the basis-pay and bonuses. Now we've got to tackle retirement plans. The problem is that while the federal tax law has been very supportive of retirement plans, they tend to discriminate against the higher salaries. The tax law has more support for lower-paid employees."
A survey of this type is very beneficial to both CUES and the credit unions it serves, Carlson noted. "It gives the credit unions' board of directors information they need to make good decisions," he said. "It's good for CUES as a service provider to credit unions. I think CUES is a diamond. It's a tremendous organization. We're very proud to work with them."
MORE
For more articles on executive compensation, go to www.cujournal.com and type "salary survey" into the search tool, or type in the following headlines:
As Expenses Rise, CUs Turn To Variable Pay As Impermanent Raises
Among Larger CUs, Gender Gap In CEO Pay Narrows
Small CUs Struggle To Make Their Wage Increases Measure Up
For more info on this story:
* www.cues.org
* www.enetrix.com(c) 2008 The Credit Union Journal and SourceMedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved.http://www.cujournal.com/ http://www.sourcemedia.com/
