Gamblor’s World

6,000 more Ont. civil servants, public sector workers join $100k club
Fri Mar 30, 5:02 PM

By Keith Leslie

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TORONTO (CP) - Energy sector bosses topped the annual list of Ontario civil servants and public sector workers who earned over $100,000 last year, which jumped a whopping 24 per cent over 2005.

The so-called “sunshine list” shows 34,000 Ontario government employees and workers at Crown corporations, municipalities, hospitals, colleges and universities pulled in more than $100,000 last year, an increase of 6,000 over 2005.

Number one on the earnings list was ousted Hydro One CEO Tom Parkinson, who made $1.69 million before quitting in December after the auditor questioned his expenses, followed by current Ontario Power Generation boss Jim Hankinson at $1.48 million.

David Goulding, CEO of the Independent Electricity System Operator, was third at $1.2 million, while Howard Weston, chair of the Ontario Energy Board, made $650,000 and Jan Carr, CEO at the Ontario Power Authority, made $642,000.

But it wasn’t just the big shots in the energy sector who were members of the $100,000 club.

OPG has about 5,500 workers who made over $100,000 last year, while another 1,800 at Hydro One were on the list.

The scandal-plagued Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. has almost 140 employees making more than $100,000, with many making twice that amount, including Jim Warren, Premier Dalton McGuinty’s former communications director.

Opposition critics said the number of six-figure salaries at the lottery corporation “skyrocketed” under the Liberals, yet none of the big earners did anything to stop retailers from claiming tens of millions of dollars in prize money that wasn’t theirs.

“Ontarians aren’t winning the jackpot, but Dalton McGuinty’s friends and spin doctors sure are,” said Conservative critic Christine Elliott.

The lottery corporation’s CEO, Duncan Brown, quit last week in advance of a scathing ombudsman’s report that critized OLG for turning a blind eye to retailers who were ripping off customers with winning lottery tickets.

“What people simply cannot understand is Duncan Brown . . . how he’s paid off with a severance package of three-quarters of a million dollars,” complained NDP critic Peter Kormos.

Hospital executives were also among the highest provincial earners last year.

Jeffrey Lozon, president and CEO of St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto, topped the list of hospital administrators with a combined salary and benefit package of $700,000.

Robert Bell, president and CEO of University Health Networks, made $667,000, while his counterpart at the Ottawa Hospital, John Kitts, collected $624,000.

“People understand somebody in a senior management position making $100,000 or even $200,000,” said Kormos.

“But salaries like $600,000 and $700,000 a year, or $1.5 million a year? This is right out of touch with reality when you’re tapping the taxpayer’s pocketbook to pay those salaries.”

The Conservatives said the main problem with the growing number of provincial workers earning over $100,000 is that voters are not getting good value for their money.

“We don’t have any problem with people earning what they’re supposed to earn for the performance that they provide,” said Elliott.

“But I think most Ontarians would feel that we’re not seeing better performance and service, so I don’t think a lot of people will be very happy about this.”

The sunshine list also includes thousands of police officers and dozens of examples of elementary and high school teachers and nurses making over $100,000 a year, including one nurse at Toronto’s Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre who was paid $139,000.

A paramedic at James Bay General Hospital made $137,000.

Three plumbers at the Toronto District School Board also made the $100,000 club, as did another man who repairs windows at Toronto schools.