A Korn/Ferry survey released Thursday found that compensation for first-year executives declined globally for the first time in five years.
The average 7.3% decline this year comes after executive compensation reached its peak in 2008.
CEO pay declined in North America and in Asia, but actually increased in Europe.
Gary Burnison, CEO of Korn/Ferry International, said a movement towards performance-based compensation models that weigh deferred compensation such as stock options more heavily as one of the reasons for the pay decline this year. "It's clear that the ailing economy and heightened scrutiny over executive compensation had a noticeable effect on the corporate landscape."
However, not all c-level executives saw their pay decline. Compensation for chief information and technology officers reached a new high in 2009 and have increased 35.7% since 2005