RTÉ Director General Kevin Bakhurst said he is "sickened" about a 10% pay rise given to RTÉ executives in 2022.
He said he did not understand why the raise was not conveyed to the Government at the time and said it would not happen again.
Mr Bakhurst, who has been Director General since July, made the comment while appearing before the Oireachtas Committee on Media to face further questions over the financial controls at the organisation.
When asked about the potential sale of the RTÉ site in Donnybrook, he said that "all options are on the table - full sale, partial sale and doing nothing".
He said he did not believe that "doing nothing" was an option, and added that he has asked for a valuation of the entire site.
He said he hopes to have a figure in a couple of weeks.
Mr Bakhurst also confirmed that a freeze on recruitment was announced to staff earlier, while discretionary spending has also been paused, which will limit outside broadcast events and investments on digital, including the RTÉ Player.
"In the short-term there are limited levers I can pull," he said.
The committee also heard that RTÉ is facing a deficit of €28 million this year. €21 million is linked to a steep decline in licence fee revenue.
Mr Bakhurst promised that he would do everything in his power to avoid compulsory redundancies
In the short-term, RTÉ will have to cut back on spending as it awaits a political decision on its future funding, which could impact broadcasting on things like sport and political party conferences, he said.
No plan agreed on repayments
Mr Bakhurst said there was no plan agreed for Ryan Tubridy to repay the €150,000 he had been paid in advance by RTÉ for future personal appearances with a commercial partner.
When Mr Tubridy appeared before Oireachtas members earlier in the summer, he indicated a willingness to pay the money back if the personal appearance events did not materialise.
Talks between Mr Bakhurst and Mr Tubridy about his potential return to RTÉ radio broke down in August.
Mr Bakhurst was asked whether a payment plan was in place for the €150,000.
"The answer is no," he replied.
"I asked him about that money. I said in the previous committee I appeared in, that I thought (while) we don't have a legal mechanism to get it back, because it was agreed by RTÉ, but I think there's a moral case there.
"I asked him about it. It was in your documents (RTÉ documents sent to media committee members) that it was part of the proposed deal if he came back that he was agreeing, if he came back, to repay that money."
He added: "We have no legal tools to pursue him. I've said what I have to say about it which is, I think, it's a moral case to pay it back, but I also understand that as a result of where negotiations went, Ryan doesn't have a source of income at the moment."
Mr Bakhurst also confirmed there has been legal correspondence from Mr Turbridy's representatives regarding the the ending of his contract.
Fine Gael TD Brendan Griffin asked if Mr Bakhurst thought that he had treated Mr Tubridy fairly.
"Yes, I do," Mr Bakhurst said.
"I felt to move on, you had to accept the facts and you also had to accept you also had some role in it", he added, noting RTÉ's major role.
"That wasn't forthcoming."
'Highly-damaging period'
RTÉ Board Chair Siún Ní Raghallaigh also appeared before the committee, and said that it has been a "highly-damaging period" for the broadcaster in her opening statement.
She said that "the last number of months have been unseemly, and highly-damaging for RTÉ" and "public trust has been eroded".
She said that "RTÉ is engaging thoroughly with both Government-appointed expert committees on governance, culture and human resources" as well as Mazars, so that it can bring its final report to the Department of Media.
Chairperson of the RTÉ Board Siún Ní Raghallaigh told the Oireachtas Media Committee that "a wide-ranging series of changes" have been made to ensure good governance is "at the heart of how RTÉ carries out its business" | Follow updates: https://t.co/yLAWGTdJkb pic.twitter.com/AzOId49xRH
— RTÉ News (@rtenews) September 13, 2023
"The current system is a legacy of a different era; obsolete, redundant, antiquated," she said.
She said that Mr Bakhurst and his interim leadership team will soon complete a strategic review of the organisation and she expects that the review would "then shape what will be a costed restructuring plan".
"Hard decisions must be made in order to achieve a fit for purpose public service broadcaster," she added, and "these decisions may not be popular with stakeholders and policy makers, including perhaps this committee".
'Tough months' for staff
RTÉ Board member Robert Shortt said it has been "a tough couple of months" for staff, with a lot of anger, incredulity, embarrassment and concern for what happens next.
"We did ask a lot of questions" as a board, but "not enough questions" nor did they take account of the risks involved, he said.
"That is a matter of profound regret," he added.
Mr Shortt added that he was taken aback by Deputy Griffin comparing buying the TV Licence to buying a round of drinks.
'Far too many allowances in RTÉ'
Earlier in the meeting, Mr Bakhurst was asked about a report that those claiming car allowances do not need a driving licence to do so.
He said that "there are far too many allowances in RTÉ" and added that he is dealing with issue.
When asked about the broadcaster's contract with a photographer worth €240,000, he said: "I want to see more details on that and I'll be happy to come back to you with more details".
He is "not aware of every single hiring decision" in RTÉ, but was "surprised to see it".
He was also asked about RTÉ's membership of Soho House Club in London, with Sinn Féin TD Imelda Munster saying that the committee was "blatantly misled", having been told it was used for business meetings as the organisation had no offices in the city.
"Your documents show us that no meetings took place," she said. "It was used for accommodation purposes" and this is "quite shocking".
Mr Bakhurst said it is "shocking ... that we had that membership". He said he could not explain how it was used.
When asked if the membership had been cancelled, he said that "we are not paying it as far as I am aware" anymore.
RTÉ Director General Kevin Bakhurst says he found it "shocking" that RTÉ had a membership with Soho House, a private member's club in London | Follow updates: https://t.co/yLAWGTdJkb pic.twitter.com/HqBoErP67n
— RTÉ News (@rtenews) September 13, 2023
"We are not paying it now - that's for sure".
Fianna Fáil Senator Malcolm Byrne asked why the salary agreed with Mr Tubridy had been revealed in a Prime Time interview, when the top 100 staff salaries cannot be revealed.
Mr Bakhurst explained that he had already agreed to put Mr Tubridy's salary and the terms of his contract into the public domain.
"We asked a number of people in the top 100 if they objected and many did," he added.
Director of Legal Affairs Paula Mullooly said there were a "number of objections ... we're talking a handful" when the first list was issued.
She said external legal advice was sought on the issue.
