Despite the recession in the country
425 percent salary increase: DAX managers delete millions
Updated on April 14th, 2025 – 11:58 a.m.Reading time: 2 min.
Germany’s economy is in crisis – many corporations are relying on a savings course. However, the wages of the top CEOs have risen sharply.
The salaries of the Dax bosses made a clear leap up last year-despite the recession in Germany. According to calculations by the “Handelsblatt” magazine, salaries have increased by average by 10.4 percent. The board members of the DAX companies also earned significantly more in 2024: here salaries increased by an average of 5.2 percent.
According to “Handelsblatt” Christian Klein, the top earner among the DAX bosses: The head of the software company SAP therefore earned 19 million euros last year. Beiersdorf boss Vincent Warnery follows with a salary of 13.2 million in salary a year.
The bosses in the circular German car economy also cut out decent salaries last year and, according to “Handelsblatt” calculations, have 12.5 million euros, which had imposed a strict savings plan for his company, and Mercedes-Benz boss Ola Kaellenius, Mercedes-Benz boss Ola Kaellenius. On average, the DAX bosses earned 6.3 million euros.
The Frenchman Vincent Warnery made the largest salary plus among the Dax CEOs-compared to 2023, his salary increased by 425 percent. Hamburger Beiersdorf AG includes brands such as Nivea and Labello. “Handelsblatt” explains the salary increase with a four-year bonus of 10.9 million euros, which Warney 2025 receives.
The overheated stock market is one of the factors for the salary jump at the DAX CEOs. This mechanism is not uncontroversial: Management consultant Sebastian Pacher explains to the “Handelsblatt”: “The remuneration systems are not always balanced. They often strike more upwards in good business and stock price development than with poorer.” In the corporations, dissatisfaction with the discrepancy between the salaries of the bosses and the employees increases.
According to the figures of the Federal Statistical Office, the salary increase of the CEOs is clearly above the German cut. The salaries nominally rose by 5.4 percent, and real – i.e. the inclusion of inflation – even only by 3.1 percent.
