NAB exempts CFOs from bonus cuts

Most of the most senior staff of National Australia Bank had their short-term bonuses cut in 2014, an outcome foreshadowed by chief executive Andrew Thorburn at the annual results.

In all, NAB cut the bill for all senior staff (disclosed in the 2014 annual report) by close to A$7 million to $33.5 million. This encompasses base pay and long-term payments as well as short-term bonuses.

Mark Joiner, the departed chief financial officer, was an exception - after a year Thorburn said in the annual review was "disappointing." Joiner's short-term bonus of $720,600 reflects a deferred cash bonus from 2013 being paid in the reporting period as well as the full expense of the 2014 bonus.

The new CFO, Craig Drummond, also earned a hefty short-term bonus of $2.3 million taking his total pay to $6.8 million, which allows for a sign-on payment.

Drummond was the highest paid NAB exec in the last year, earning more than three times Thorburn's pay of $2.3 million.