A public sector unit employee, on an average, received an annual salary of Rs 6.09 lakh (Rs 609,000) in 2009-10, with total emoluments increasing more than 100 per cent in the last four years.

According to a Public Enterprises Survey of the government, it was thanks to the pay hike which was effected in 2008-09 following the implementation of the Wage Commission Committee.

Despite the salary increase, PSUs have managed to increase their net profit by 10.40 per cent to a combined Rs 92,593 crore (Rs 925.93 billion) in 2009-10.

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Of the 249 central public sector undertakings (CPUs), as many as 217 are making profits.

However, in 2009-10, salaries and wages in all PSUs went up by 9.41 per cent to Rs 90,863 crore (Rs 908.63 billion) for the period under review.

The CPSUs have also trimmed their workforce by 43,000 during the period covered in the survey.

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The number of people employed in the state-owned companies came down to 14.91 lakh (1.491 million) -- excluding casual workers -- in 2009-10 from 15.34 lakh (1.534 million) in the previous year, it said.

About 3.54 lakh (354,000) people had opted for the voluntary retirement scheme till March 2010, since it was introduced in 1988.

Of the total workforce in 249 central PSUs, about one-fourth of the manpower was in managerial and supervisory cadre.