Ag vanishes from sunshine list
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
by BETTER FARMING STAFF
Six agricultural agencies that reported on last year’s Ontario’s public salary disclosure list have disappeared from this year’s list.
As well, the Council of the College of Veterinarians of Ontario, listed as an agency on the province’s public appointments secretariat, appears to have not been included in either the list for 2011 or 2012.
Published annually by the province, the list provides salary details of public sector employees who earn $100,000 or more. It also includes employees from organizations that receive public funding from the province.
The 2012 list was released last week.
Susan Murray, a spokesperson for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food, says in an email all of the agencies had complied with the provincial disclosure legislation. “Their information was inadvertently missed from the initial public listing,” she writes.
She says it will be posted in an addendum that will appear on the Ministry of Finance’s webpage “soon.”
Five of the agencies had indicated on the 2011 list that they did not have employees that earn more than $100,000. The agencies are the Business Risk Management Review Committee, Grain Financial Protection Board, Livestock Financial Protection Board, Livestock Medicines Advisory Committee and the Rural Economic Development Advisory Panel.
The sixth agency, the Ontario Food Terminal Board, had listed its general manager, Bruce Nicholas, in an addendum to the 2011 list. Nicholas’ salary earnings were $145,522.08 for that year. There is no entry for the food terminal on the 2012 list.
Murray says the food terminal will be the only one of the missing agencies listing an employee earning more than $100,000 this year.
Jim Brandle, CEO of Vineland Research & Innovation was the top agricultural public sector earner in 2012. Brandle made $236,163.41 and nearly $51,000 in taxable benefits for the year. Hillary Dawson, president of the Wine Council of Ontario, was the second highest earner with a salary of $227,099.
New to the list this year was Geri Kamenz, chair of the Ontario Farm Products and Marketing Commission. Kamenz earned $116,845.91 in 2012.
While the number of agriculture public sector employees making $100,000 has grown — there are 157 currently listed in 2012, up 13 from 2011 — a number of top agricultural public sector earners saw their salaries drop in 2012. For example, deputy minister John Burke’s salary dropped about $18,000 to $219,396.58 from its 2011 level. Fareed Amin, another deputy minister, also earned $219,396.58 in 2012.
Brian Sterling, executive director of On-Trace Agri-Food Traceability was the top earner for 2011 with a salary of $239,846. In 2012, his salary dropped to 214,794.02. BF