Finance minister Brian Lenihan will lose out on more than €160m this year following his decision not to apply a controversial pension levy on over 40,000 public servants working in commercial semi-state bodies.

Speaking in the Dáil last week Lenihan confirmed workers from companies such as the ESB, CIE, RTÉ, An Bord Gáis and the VHI are exempt from the levy. In addition, for constitutional reasons, the levy cannot be imposed on President Mary McAleese and the judiciary.

Commercial semi-state bodies are exempt because, though government-owned, they do not receive direct government funding and are expected to stand on their own feet commercially. For pay purposes they are seen as private companies by the Department of Finance.

The surprise exemption is a double boost for the 8,000 ESB staff who last November were one of the few groups of workers to receive the first-phase 3.5% increase under the national pay deal. The ESB was criticised for paying the increase given the government's ongoing efforts to cutback on public sector pay.

The ESB has since said it will not pay the second-phase increase of 2.5% due later this year. Now other commercial semi-states are forced to follow suit. Bord Gáis and Bord na Móna are in talks with staff on a wage freeze while the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) is due in the Labour Court over its plans for cutbacks.

Meanwhile, six of the 12 chief executives of the major commercial semi-states have confirmed they will take a 10% pay cut "in the national interest" as requested by finance minister Brian Lenihan.

Since Lenihan made his plea to "senior public servants in leadership positions" last October, the minister has said the pension levy would effectively act as the required 10% cut in pay for senior public servants. As the levy will not now apply to commercial semi-states, the Sunday Tribune asked the chief executives of the top 12 commercial semi-states whether they have or intend to respond positively to the minister.

Those who have confirmed they will take a 10% cut include Padraig McManus of the ESB (salary: €534,998), Eamon Brennan of the IAA (€350,000) and John Lynch, group executive chairman of CIE (€264,990; 2007) along with the CEOs of each CIE company – Tom Hayes of Bus Éireann, Joe Meagher of Dublin Bus and Dick Fearn of Iarnród Éireann.

Also taking the 10% cut in the national interest are Gabriel D'Arcy of Bord na Móna and John Mullins of Bord Gáis (max €297,024). Paul Maloney of the Dublin Docklands Development Authority (€151, 267) will "follow government guidelines".

Dermot Griffin of the National Lottery (€276,000) and Donal Connell of An Post (€414,000) said their 2009 salaries have "yet to be finalised". Enda Connelan of Dublin Port, David Gunning of Coillte (€409,000), Jimmy Tolan of VHI (€297,000) and Declan Collier of the Dublin Airport Authority (€698,000) have said their salary is a private matter to be considered by the board.