The Fiji Sugar Corporation has strongly rejected claims by Fiji Labour Party leader Mahendra Chaudhry that FSC executives are receiving bonus payments, with Chairman Nitya Reddy stating that no bonuses have been paid to senior staff under the current board.
In a statement, Reddy said not a single FSC employee has received a bonus payment during the tenure of the current board and that the board is unaware of any bonus payments made over the past decade.
“Under the current Board, not a single one of FSC’s more than 2,000 employees has received a bonus payment,” Reddy said.
He added that while workers across many sectors in Fiji have received regular annual salary increases, FSC employees received only one five percent salary increase after a break of nearly five years.
Reddy also defended the corporation’s current remuneration structure, arguing that previous FSC executives received significantly higher salaries despite the company’s financial struggles at the time.
“Publicly available records indicate that former Chief Executive Officers Abdul Khan and Graham Clark received remuneration approaching one million dollars per annum, including salary and benefits,” he said.
He noted that several other senior executives during that period earned between approximately $350,000 and $550,000 annually.
Reddy said the current board had sought to address disparities that existed within the corporation, particularly among lower-paid workers.
“During the same period, more than 2,000 FSC employees were earning between three and four dollars per hour, with annual incomes of less than $10,000, despite facing significant cost-of-living pressures,” he said.
“At the same time, the Corporation’s two highest-paid executives were receiving remuneration almost 100 times greater than that of many of their fellow employees.”
He said the board remains committed to ensuring remuneration practices are fair, responsible and aligned with FSC’s financial position.
“The Board firmly believes that every employee plays a valuable role in the success of FSC and that remuneration should reflect fairness, accountability and responsible governance,” Reddy said.
Reddy also dismissed claims regarding directors’ remuneration, stating that FSC directors receive an annual allowance of $6,500 while the chairman receives $12,800 per year, rates that have remained unchanged since 2006.
“Claims that FSC’s Chairman receives remuneration in the order of millions of dollars are entirely false,” he said.
“The lowest-paid director of any public enterprise in Fiji receives approximately $12,000 annually, almost double the allowance paid to an FSC Director.”
Reddy said such allegations undermine the morale of FSC employees and the efforts being made to restore the corporation’s long-term sustainability.
