Amid global calls for review of excessive executive compensation while the rest of the company employees continue to tighten their belts due to wage hike freezes, an Australian retailer reduced the pay of its top boss.

Myer Chief Executive Bernie Brookes had to forego his $950,000 long-term incentive share-based payments because the company failed to meet its incentive targets. Myer earnings went down by more than 4 per cent from 12 months ago.

As a result, he suffered a sharp fall in total remuneration from the previous corresponding fiscal year which hit $5.45 million. That figure, however, is more than three times lower than his previous year's $17.3 million total executive remuneration.

Despite the sharp cut, Mr Brookes's annual cash salary for the year to June 30 was $1.63 million - which would still be the envy of many Australians. It actually increased slightly from his previous year's cash pay of $1.6 million.

He is optimistic that Myer would be able to recover in the next 12 months, which would be felt in his future paychecks.

"Although the retail environment remains extremely challenging, our strong, experienced and committed team will continue to manage the business appropriately," Mr Brookes wrote in Myer's annual report.

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show that the country's retail industry is starting to recover, although slowly. Turnover grew by 1.8 per cent in August 2011 compared to a year ago. Subsectors that registered growths in sales were food, cafes, restaurant and takeaway food services and household goods.

RELATED STORIES