Starting next year, the BBC director general Mark Thompson plans to scrap pension top-up payments to the corporation's directors, which make up more for than £1m a year.
Thompson announcement on Monday was aimed to calm staff anger over planned changes to the corporation's pension scheme.
He has pledged to cut additional payments under the so-called Funded Unapproved Retirement Benefit Schemes, or Furbs, paid to some staff on salaries of more than £123,000.
The BBC workers' unions welcomed the move but warned that it was "too little, too late".
Thompson's plan to close the current pension scheme to new joinees, and to cap increases in pensionable pay at 1 per cent for those already in the scheme, has raised concerns that the new plan would erode the value of employees' retirement incomes.
The plan was also criticised as it does not affect the annual pensions of employees whose packages are more than £400,000.
The unions have threatened to to ballot for a strike action if Thompson does not guarantee to protect the value of pensions accrued.
