'Fat Cat Day' | FTSE 100 bosses' pay surpasses median worker wage in less than 1 week of 2026

Chances are that by the time you read this, it has already happened. That is that it has taken the average FTSE 100 CEO just over two days to earn the median UK worker’s full time annual salary.

Data from the High Pay Centre shows that the average FTSE 100 CEO earnings will surpass the median UK worker’s full time annual salary at midday on Tuesday 6th January - the same amount of time as FTSE100 bosses had to work to achieve the same result in 2025.

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The calculations are based on the High Pay Centre’s analysis of the most recent CEO pay disclosures published in companies’ annual reports as of January 2026, combined with government statistics showing pay levels across the UK economy. 

Median FTSE 100 CEO pay amounted to £4.4 million (excluding pension), 113 times the median full time worker’s pay of £39,039 and a 4.22% increase from the figure of £4.22 million last year. The pay ratio of 113 is exactly the same as 2025.