Suggestions that North-East hospital bosses have enjoyed above inflation pay increases have been denied by NHS trusts.
A report suggested that changes in the way NHS chief executives’ salaries are disclosed could conceal large increases.
Research by Income Data Services (IDS) has shown the way the figures are reported means that almost a quarter of UK trust chief executives could have received huge 20% pay rises last year. But North-East trusts said that chief executives received increases in line with the national pay review body which covers all NHS staff.
Liz Twist, Northern regional secretary of public services union Unison, said: “We are in favour of salaries that recognise responsibilities of the job, but pay rises need to be transparent.”
A spokeswoman for the County Durham and Darlington Hospitals Trust said chief executive John Saxby earned £125,000 per annum. And before his appointment to the post last year, his salary saw annual increases in line with inflation, she confirmed.
While the average salary for bosses in the Northern and Yorkshire areas is £107,500, that compares to £98,000 in London. An IDS spokesman said the higher figure probably reflected the fact that many big Northern hospitals covered large areas.