The Big Boys Got A Pay Raise!
CAGERATTLER @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 4:06 am
http://tinyurl.com/jofhz
Government gives senior officials pay increase
Unannounced raises prompt critics to question Conservatives' transparency
BRIAN LAGHI
From Monday's Globe and Mail
OTTAWA — The Harper government has quietly pushed through pay increases for senior government officials, sparking criticisms that it is failing to live up to its pledge for disclosure and accountability.
NOW GET THESE FIGURES WILL YA::::::Government executives earn between $94,000 and $178,000, while deputy ministers earn between $170,000 and $288,400, not including bonuses. The heads of Crown corporations earn a minimum of $109,000, up to as high as $445,600.
Man they really needed a raise didn't they? The average working Canadian doesn't make these kind of wages!!!! The average working Canadian only got a 1% G.S.T. cut and THAT doesn't apply unless he buys something with money he hasn't got to spend in the first place!
Hard to believe 36% of the people who voted got dubed by these Conservatives into believing the campaign B.S. about accountability and transparancy! But there's one born every minute they say!!! 
Wullu @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 4:18 am
Surprising me not at all yer link does not work. Try again. Maybe then I will a comment for ya.
Robair @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 5:20 am
It's not hard to find.
I wonder what similar jobs are paying in the private sector.
Wullu @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 5:34 am
For upper management jobs like these are, I would expect them to be in the same range with roughly the same level of responsibility. Now as to wether we need as many as we have in gov't service is another question entirely.
2.5% is about what the civil service raise is this year.
DerbyX @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 6:09 am
A key issue in this debate is the way it was done.
$1:
There was no formal public announcement of the increases from Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservative government.
"What troubles me is this is a government that was elected to ensure greater transparency, and they've decided to shelve a public announcement," said John Williamson, federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.
"It's not so much the pay raise that bothers me as the way it was quietly stated."
John Gordon, president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, said the salaries of senior government executives should face the same scrutiny as those of any other public servant.
"This is really a slap in the face to our members," he said. "Regardless of the amount of money (in the raises) they should be made public."
Gordon also called the quiet pay raise a "turnabout" for a government that campaigned on a platform of more transparency.
"What troubles me is this is a government that was elected to ensure greater transparency, and they've decided to shelve a public announcement," said John Williamson, federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.
"It's not so much the pay raise that bothers me as the way it was quietly stated."
John Gordon, president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, said the salaries of senior government executives should face the same scrutiny as those of any other public servant.
"This is really a slap in the face to our members," he said. "Regardless of the amount of money (in the raises) they should be made public."
Gordon also called the quiet pay raise a "turnabout" for a government that campaigned on a platform of more transparency.
It is exactly the thing that Harper and his party campaigned bitterly against. Time and time again we see that Harper is doing everything possible to show the public that his party will be every bit as "corrupt" as they accused the Libs of being.
Wullu @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 6:44 am
Fair enough Derby, but what exactly were they supposed to do? Have Harper or the responsible minister hold a press conference to announce a raise that had been in the works with the Treasury Board for months? I am not sure what the writer of that article wanted the gov't to do to announce the raise.
I gotta say I don't recall huge announcements in the past or from provinicial gov't about raises for salaried employees. Why would there be? If it was a 20% raise or something equally as ridiculous, then yeah I want to know, but 2.5%? That is about average for the country.
Should the information with regards to public employees wages be available to the general public? Of course they work for us. Do we need a big public announcement for an inflation matching raise? If any of us really cared we can go online and find out what the average employee of the federal gov't makes. Go here to see what I make. 4th year Specialist 1 Sgt. There everyone knows now that I make $5236 a month. Did anyone really care? Just my bank.
Lord-Beaverbrook @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 6:58 am
Since when have Canadians in general become a society of outrage? It seems everything that occurs is perceived as outrageous to somebody. They gave themselves a little raise, alright. So how is this effecting you? Do we lose complimentry lollypops after vacination now? Alright.
Regina @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 7:30 am
In my city we just gave our garbage man, rink attendant, grass cutter, machine operator, and secretary, etc....... 2.5% for each, of the next three years. At least with this 2.5% the current government has given, there will be income tax paid on it. Not stuffing cash in their pockets like the previous empire did with Adscam and the gun registry.......that's all tax free folks.
VitaminC @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 7:32 am
Why the hell would executives of Crown corporations get salaries comparable to average working Canadians.....These are the people who are at the top of their game, the best in the country at what they do, nothing average about them....
They should be getting paid the same as your "average" corporate executive, which it seems is how much they are being paid.....
Do we really want average people running our country's businesses? or do we want the best and brightest we can put in there.....Geez
Regina @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 7:45 am
VitaminC VitaminC:
Why the hell would executives of Crown corporations get salaries comparable to average working Canadians.....These are the people who are at the top of their game, the best in the country at what they do, nothing average about them....
They should be getting paid the same as your "average" corporate executive, which it seems is how much they are being paid.....
Do we really want average people running our country's businesses? or do we want the best and brightest we can put in there.....Geez
They should be getting paid the same as your "average" corporate executive, which it seems is how much they are being paid.....
Do we really want average people running our country's businesses? or do we want the best and brightest we can put in there.....Geez
Blue_Nose @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 8:14 am
I haven't heard any reports on what kind of chairs they use in their CON servative offices, either - are we really to believe they don't have any chairs? So much for transparency 
VitaminC @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 8:23 am
I must say it is somewhat hypocritical that the Conservatives were always attacking the Liberals over this....But really neither party did anything wrong in this regard in my opinion.....
The whole Dingwell smear campaign comes to mind....
OOOoooOOOOoooOoo......$400,000 salary to the CEO of the Canadian Mint....OOOoOOoooOOo.....Bust out Ye Olde Lynching Tree....
DerbyX @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 8:32 am
$1:
Fair enough Derby, but what exactly were they supposed to do? Have Harper or the responsible minister hold a press conference to announce a raise that had been in the works with the Treasury Board for months? I am not sure what the writer of that article wanted the gov't to do to announce the raise.
Apparently they are supposed to do something similiar. The questions raised were valid. This is the kind of thing that only the politicos care much about. the average taxpayer resents any increase for gov't employees almost automatically but most people do realize that pay raises are fair for them as well. The lack of announcement is the thing that political opponents will pounce on and I'm am quite sure you realize that had this been the Libs doing it then we would already have seen RR and MCB launching tirade after tirade about it.
Despite that it is a real concern for people who actually still believe that Harper is going to be any different then any other gov't we elect. He ran on a platform composed largely of openness and accountability and quite frankly he has shown less of it then even I imagined.
$1:
I gotta say I don't recall huge announcements in the past or from provinicial gov't about raises for salaried employees. Why would there be? If it was a 20% raise or something equally as ridiculous, then yeah I want to know, but 2.5%? That is about average for the country.
2.5% is very reasonable and the article states that the amount wasn't really the issue (unless you are a Toronto council member). Its less then I receive yearly and I don't begrudge public servants wanting more money just because it comes from my tax dollars. Alot of them do hard jobs. The people raising the questions about the lack of announcement are the people who know about such things. I don't recall a whole lot of announcements before either but its unlikely they would have got much press unless they were 20% or something equally outrageous. Again, it is all about a gov't doing things that they specifically campaigned against.
$1:
Should the information with regards to public employees wages be available to the general public? Of course they work for us. Do we need a big public announcement for an inflation matching raise? If any of us really cared we can go online and find out what the average employee of the federal gov't makes. Go here to see what I make. 4th year Specialist 1 Sgt. There everyone knows now that I make $5236 a month. Did anyone really care? Just my bank.
Actually, I think it is reasonable for the public to know in general how much their public servants make and when and how they get their raises. Without public scrutiny you can be assured they would be helping themselves as much as all those big company execs getting paid millions. We don't have a right to know the personal finances of them but we should be aware generally of how much they make.
PluggyRug @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 9:42 am
DerbyX DerbyX:
Actually, I think it is reasonable for the public to know in general how much their public servants make and when and how they get their raises. Without public scrutiny you can be assured they would be helping themselves as much as all those big company execs getting paid millions. We don't have a right to know the personal finances of them but we should be aware generally of how much they make.
Agreed, with the added information on their expenses and other income.
As a Conservative, this should have been a public announcement.
Wullu @ Mon Jul 31, 2006 10:30 am
All valid points folks. My question is how were they supposed to go about it? Now the Treasury Board says the announcement is on their web page and that would be a pretty reasonable place to announce such a run of the mill raise.
Unfortunately the TB web page is as badly designed as every other federal gov't web page. Hell I have been using the military intranet and internet sites for years and still cannot find shit most of the time. If they say it is posted on the site then I am sure it is, but damned if I could find it.
Ok, so the TB site probably ain't the best way to release info to the public. I can't see the minister resonsible wasting time holding a news conference for 2.5%. Was it released as a normal press release? The only source I see in the article is the reference to the TB. I think a general press release would be the appropriate venue for this. If a release was done, then this is all much-a-do about nothing to my mind.