Am sitting beside two fat, balding casual-yet-expensive-shirt-wearing businessmen in a coffee shop. Look like the types to own companies that are into small arms manufacturing (or landmine making, small fluffy animal experimenting, sweatshop owning… whatever).
Both are pontificating loudly about how disgraceful it is that Pat Kenny earns as much as he does…
One of them has a particular bee in his bonnet that Pat has lost audience in recent times and that yet his salary continues to go up…
I wonder if they get smaller salaries from their firms if they sell less whaling ships this month?
Sorry, the facetious chip is set to 11 this morning 🙂
R
3 thoughts on “Overheard In Dublin…”
Almost certainly their pay is directly linked to their performance and sales figures is a popular measure.
That is the norm in the private sector. About 15% of my salary is variable and is tied to a specific sales number. And I wouldn’t describe myself as a senior (or even middle rank) person on the company.
what sliabh said. the same should apply to all RTE presenters – if their audience goes down, their pay should go down too. Gerry ryan would probably end up moving to a bedsit in parnell st which might be no bad thing for him.
I know where you guys are coming from; maybe I expressed myself poorly. In this business (having done it for long enough) you are never the sole influence over your own audience figures.
They depend on the guy on before you, the guy in front of him, how the station is promoting itself, the amount of money you spend on advertising and whether or not what you do is aiming itself at the broadest lowest common denominator. You are never in control of your own destiny and if the other ducks aren’t lining up then nothing you do can alter your figures.
As a public service broadcaster we could have larger audiences if we played Kylie all day but isn’t that technically why we are a public service broadcaster? So we can do the radio that’s not profitable enough for commercial stations…? (Maybe I read the induction manual wrong…)
Before I came here I had small variable ratings related bonuses too but think of it – RTE presenters getting bonuses? How would that sit with the public…?
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