PCs call for disclosure of all Hydro One salaries over $100K

TORONTO The Progressive Conservatives are calling on the Liberal government to publish Hydro One salaries when the so-called sunshine list of public-sector workers making more than $100,000 comes out.

Salaries at Hydro One were exempted from the annual publicsector salary disclosure last year once the government sold the first 15 per cent tranche of the formerly public utility.

The former Hydro One CEO was paid $745,000 in 2014, and about 3,800 workers were paid over $100,000 that year, but they’re no longer included in the public disclosure. The current Hydro One CEO earns a $850,000 base salary that could rise to a maximum of $4 million with bonuses.

“Everything about this deal has happened behind a big, black curtain,” said PC energy critic Todd Smith, noting the company is also no longer subject to oversight by legislative officers, such as the ombudsman and auditor general.

The Tories have called before for Hydro One salaries to stay public at least while the government still owns at least 50 per cent — about 30 per cent has been sold so far and the government intends to sell 60 per cent. Smith said he intends to introduce a private member’s bill to amend the Public Sector Salary Disclosure Act if the government doesn’t heed his call this time.

A spokesman for Energy Minister Glenn Thibeault sounded unreceptive to Smith’s call and suggested his news conference was an attempt to distract from good job numbers released last week.

“As previously disclosed, Hydro One is now a publicly traded company and must annually and publicly report on the compensation of its executives, as they have always done,” Colin Nekolaichuk said.

Publicly traded companies are obliged to disclose the salaries of their CEO, CFO and next three highest-paid executives if they earn more than $150,000.

The issue of executive compensation is top of mind right now as broader public-sector agencies propose new packages for top brass as a wage freeze lifts — and salaries floated colleges, transit agency Metrolinx and Ontario Power Generation have drawn criticism.

Premier Kathleen Wynne told OPG it must come up with a more reasonable salary range than the $3.8-million cap it arrived at for the CEO. That would be a raise of about 153 per cent from the current $1.5 million the CEO earns, though OPG has said the actual salary would be significantly less than the cap.