Travel and Leisure Industry Salary Survey 1997 found that the highest paid directors at the UK’s top 12 tourism and hospitality companies earned an average of £478 500, compared to a staff average of £11 360. Some of the so-called ‘fat cats’ were: Peter George – Ladbroke chief executive £1 280 000 Gerry Robinson – Granada chairman £728 000 (though in December 1999 by cashing in share options he made a pre-tax profit of £5.26 million) Sir Ian Prosser – Bass chairman £678 000 Caterer and Hotelkeeper (23 December 1999) reported that chief executives in the hospitality industry received an average pay increase of 20.8 per cent, compared to 3.5 per cent for employees.
