Educators top the pay scales in public sector agriculture
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
If you're looking for money in agriculture's public sector, check out education. University of Guelph educators are the top agricultural earners on the 2008 Ontario public sector salary disclosure list.
At a salary of $207,982, Elizabeth Stone, dean of the Ontario Veterinary College, is one of the university's highest-paid employees, but she's not at the top. That honour goes to its president and vice-chancellor, Alastair Summerlee, remunerated to the tune of $434,518 and another $29,495 in benefits.
Michael Goss, since retired as director of the university's Kemptville campus, cashed cheques for $152,457 last year and Art Schaafsma, director of the university's Ridgetown campus, earned $123,977. Having only taken the reins as the new dean of the Ontario Agricultural College in August 2008, Robert Gordon didn't make the list.
At the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA), deputy minister George Zegarac was the top salary earner among the ministry's 846 year-long full-time employees, grossing $184,616. That's considerably less than the $239,612 and $5,132 in benefits Bruce Archibald, OMAFRA's former deputy minister and now deputy minister of international trade and investment, made last year. The $153,909 salary of OMAFRA's assistant deputy minister of research and corporate services, Karen Chan, was modest compared to the ministry's other assistant deputy ministers, most of whom earned more than $180,000, but her benefits of $3,872 were the highest of those listed working all year for the ministry.
Over at Agricorp, chief executive officer Randy Jackiw raked in $170,622 and $12,486 in benefits. Of Agricorp's 348 full-time employees, 14 made more than $100,000. Agricorp is listed as a crown corporation, and isn't part of OMAFRA.
The Agricultural Research Institute of Ontario, the Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Appeal Tribunal, the Livestock Financial Protection Board and the Ontario Farm Products Marketing Commission did not have salaries to disclose. However, David Hope, who retired as chair of Farm Products last fall, earned $180,852 as an OMAFRA assistant deputy minister overseeing regulated marketing. BF