Donald Walker of Magna International tops the list of Canada’s highest paid working CEOs—second only to former Valeant Pharmaceuticals CEO Michael Pearson. (Chris Young/CP)
During its brief stint at the top of the Canadian corporate hierarchy—before a series of scandals crashed its share price and gutted its C-suite—Valeant Pharmaceuticals International got used to breaking records. Add another one to the list: for one year, it smashed all records for the highest executive compensation in Canada, awarding its former CEO Michael Pearson $179 million in company stock, for a total take-home of $182 million, more than double paid to the previous year’s highest paid CEO, BlackBerry’s John Chen.
Pearson is an outlier; the second-highest paid leader (who is still employed as CEO) is Magna International’s Donald Walker, whose take-home came to $26 million.
This ranking is compiled each year by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, using publicly available data. (Companies take varying amounts of time to disclose executive compensation, which is why this ranking covers the year 2015.) The left-leaning think tank uses the figures to highlight the gap between what the average Canadian makes compared to C-suite executives. This year’s average CEO salary among the top 100 highest-paid executives topped $9.5 million, which is 193 times the annual wage of an average Canadian.
“I’ve been tracking CEO pay in Canada for 10 years and nothing has changed,” said CCPA economist Hugh Mackenzie in a news release. “CEO pay keeps soaring, luxe stock option, pension and bonus packages remain the gold standard for CEOs, and despite public outrage, neither corporate boards nor shareholders are stepping in to put a lid on things.”
Regardless of what you think about how much CEOs deserve to be paid—it’s a more complicated issue than you might think—the list highlights another stark gap in the boardrooms of the nation: just two of the top 100 highest paid CEOs in Canada are women. For complete details of the ranking, as well as much more about the forces at work in CEO compensation, check out the CCPA’s website.
MORE ABOUT CEO SALARIES:
- A simple fix for CEO salaries
- Why comparing CEO pay to average incomes makes no sense
- How long it takes Canadian CEOs to make as much as most of us do in a year
- How Michelle de Cordova is persuading banks to close the CEO pay gap
- RBC is the first Canadian bank to weigh CEO pay against average employee salaries
Canada’s Top 100 Highest-Paid CEOs
* “Other Compensation” includes bonuses, shares, options, pension and any other payments. Full details at CCPA.
| Rank | Name | Company | Base Salary | Other Compensation* | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Pearson | Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. | - | $182,902,189 | $182,902,189 |
| 2 | Donald Walker | Magna International Inc. | $415,462 | $26,124,238 | $26,539,700 |
| 3 | Hunter Harrison | Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. | $2,803,522 | $17,098,931 | $19,902,453 |
| 4 | Steven Hudson | Element Financial Corp. | $1,200,000 | $18,077,385 | $19,277,385 |
| 5 | Mark Barrenechea | Open Text Corp. | $981,787 | $16,988,255 | $17,970,042 |
| 6 | Donald Guloien | Manulife Financial Corp. | $1,723,671 | $13,889,848 | $15,613,519 |
| 7 | Brian Hannasch | Alimentation Couche-Tard | $1,356,260 | $13,458,456 | $14,814,716 |
| 8 | Linda Hasenfratz | Linamar Corp. | $605,839 | $13,608,995 | $14,214,834 |
| 9 | James Smith | Thomson Reuters Corp. | $1,981,433 | $11,730,709 | $13,712,142 |
| 10 | Bradley Shaw | Shaw Communications Inc. | $2,500,000 | $10,641,235 | $13,141,235 |
| 11 | Robert Card (Former CEO) | SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. | $931,041 | $12,116,407 | $13,047,448 |
| 12 | Darren Entwistle | Telus Corp. | $1,375,000 | $11,157,296 | $12,532,296 |
| 13 | Steven Williams | Suncor Energy Inc. | $1,375,000 | $11,596,795 | $12,200,495 |
| 14 | Jeffrey Orr | Power Financial Corp. | $4,341,000 | $7,333,302 | $11,674,302 |
| 15 | David McKay | Royal Bank of Canada | $1,300,000 | $10,355,893 | $11,655,893 |
| 16 | George Cope | BCE Inc. | $1,400,000 | $10,144,999 | $11,544,999 |
| 17 | Doug Suttles | Encana Corp. | $1,088,886 | $10,137,104 | $11,225,990 |
| 18 | Guy Laurence | Rogers Communications Inc. | $1,267,308 | $9,931,427 | $11,198,735 |
| 19 | Brian Porter | Bank of Nova Scotia | $1,000,000 | $9,907,196 | $10,907,196 |
| 20 | Bharat Masrani | Toronto-Dominion Bank | $1,000,000 | $9,698,222 | $10,698,222 |
| 21 | Charles Magro | Agrium Inc. | $1,400,846 | $9,034,673 | $10,435,519 |
| 22 | Robert A Gannitcott (former CEO) | Dominion Diamond Corp. | $397,338 | $9,865,983 | $10,263,321 |
| 23 | Donald Lindsay | Teck Resources Ltd. | $1,493,500 | $8,749,250 | $10,242,750 |
| 24 | William Downe | Bank of Montreal | $1,882,050 | $8,289,575 | $10,171,625 |
| 25 | Claude Mongeau | Canadian Natl Railway Co | $1,374,603 | $8,702,501 | $10,077,104 |
| 26 | Rejean Robitaille | Laurentian Bank of Canada | $598,361 | $9,139,718 | $9,738,079 |
| 27 | Charles Jeannes | Goldcorp Inc. | $1,499,498 | $7,958,839 | $9,458,337 |
| 28 | Gerald Schwartz | Onex Corp. | $1,661,847 | $7,670,064 | $9,331,911 |
| 29 | Glenn Chamandy | Gildan Activewear Inc. | $1,277,692 | $7,994,483 | $9,272,175 |
| 30 | Daniel Schwartz | Restaurant Brands Intern | $1,052,176 | $8,109,157 | $9,161,333 |
| 31 | Michael Roach | CGI Group Inc. | $1,333,000 | $7,700,713 | $9,033,713 |
| 32 | Rich Kruger | Imperial Oil Ltd. | $1,062,600 | $8,302,163 | $9,010,906 |
| 33 | Patrick Carlson | Seven Generations Energy | $500,000 | $8,438,596 | $8,938,596 |
| 34 | Mark Thompson (Chairman & CEO) | Concordia International Corp. | $691,000 | $8,236,963 | $8,927,963 |
| 35 | Al Monaco | Enbridge Inc. | $1,246,750 | $7,652,452 | $8,899,202 |
| 36 | Scott Saxberg | Crescent Point Energy Corp. | $1,122,378 | $7,687,917 | $8,810,295 |
| 37 | Russell Girling | TransCanada Corp. | $1,300,008 | $7,499,000 | $8,799,008 |
| 38 | Sean Boyd | Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. | $1,500,000 | $7,132,420 | $8,632,420 |
| 39 | Marc Poulin | Empire Co. Ltd. | $1,000,000 | $7,575,955 | $8,575,955 |
| 40 | Victor Dodig | Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce | $1,000,000 | $7,538,900 | $8,538,900 |
| 41 | Galen Weston | Loblaw Companies Ltd. | $1,100,000 | $7,385,197 | $8,485,197 |
| 42 | Brian Ferguson | Cenovus Energy Inc. | $1,350,000 | $6,604,525 | $7,954,525 |
| 43 | Dean Connor | Sun Life Financial Inc. | $1,000,000 | $6,884,879 | $7,884,879 |
| 44 | Alain Bedard (President & CEO) | Transforce Inc. | $1,315,000 | $6,505,602 | $7,820,602 |
| 45 | Paul Desmarais, Jr. | Power Corp. of Canada | $1,150,000 | $6,547,144 | $7,697,144 |
| 46 | Bruce Flatt | Brookfield Asset Management | $767,006 | $6,864,089 | $7,631,095 |
| 47 | André Desmarais | Power Corp. of Canada | $1,150,000 | $6,761,380 | $7,601,380 |
| 48 | Calin Rovinescu | Air Canada | $1,400,000 | $5,787,864 | $7,187,864 |
| 49 | Paul Mahon | Great-West Lifeco Inc. | $1,064,231 | $6,088,818 | $7,153,049 |
| 50 | Paul Wright | Eldorado Gold Corp. | $1,144,548 | $5,441,639 | $6,586,187 |
| 51 | Francois Olivier | Transcontinental Inc. | $1,012,948 | $5,565,681 | $6,578,629 |
| 52 | Louis Vachon | National Bank of Canada | $1,125,015 | $6,703,138 | $6,555,153 |
| 53 | Alain Bellemare (President & CEO) | Bombardier Inc. | $864,300 | $5,561,700 | $6,426,000 |
| 54 | Ravi Saligram | Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers | $1,278,344 | $5,096,964 | $6,375,308 |
| 55 | Michael McCain | Maple Leaf Foods Inc. | $1,050,125 | $5,042,971 | $6,093,096 |
| 56 | Charles Brindamour | Intact Financial Corp. | $934,250 | $5,120,697 | $6,054,947 |
| 57 | Barry Perry | Fortis Inc. | $1,025,000 | $4,997,319 | $6,022,319 |
| 58 | J. Paul Rollinson | Kinross Gold Corp. | $939,250 | $5,012,884 | $5,952,134 |
| 59 | Tim Gitzel | Cameco Corp. | $1,035,282 | $4,882,065 | $5,917,347 |
| 60 | Edward Sonshine | Riocan REIT | $1,300,000 | $4,420,000 | $5,720,000 |
| 61 | John Floren | Methanex Corp. | $932,000 | $4,766,022 | $5,698,022 |
| 62 | John M. Cassaday (Former President & CEO) | Corus Entertainment Inc. | $579,861 | $4,757,378 | $5,337,239 |
| 63 | Gerald Storch | Hudson's Bay Co | $1,555,080 | $3,776,700 | $5,331,780 |
| 64 | Scott Thomson | Finning International Inc. | $909,833 | $4,370,985 | $5,280,818 |
| 65 | Gregory Lang | Novagold Resources Inc. | $714,363 | $4,492,896 | $5,207,259 |
| 66 | Larry Rossy | Dollarama Inc. | $813,540 | $4,372,997 | $5,186,537 |
| 67 | Geoffrey Martin | CCL Industries Inc. | $1,201,978 | $3,948,890 | $5,150,868 |
| 68 | Steve Laut | Canadian Natural Resources | $660,961 | $4,486,546 | $5,147,507 |
| 69 | Asim Ghosh | Husky Energy Inc. | $1,721,000 | $3,399,716 | $5,120,716 |
| 70 | Gregg Saretsky | Westjet Airlines Ltd. | $698,632 | $4,231,967 | $4,930,599 |
| 71 | Richard D. McBee | Mitel Networks Corp. | $762,019 | $4,065,875 | $4,827,894 |
| 72 | Marc Parent | CAE Inc. | $860,000 | $3,852,854 | $4,712,854 |
| 73 | Randy Smallwood | Silver Wheaton Corp. | $872,806 | $3,704,958 | $4,577,764 |
| 76 | Ellis Jacob | Cineplex Inc. | $1,000,000 | $3,496,806 | $4,496,806 |
| 74 | Dawn L. Farrell | Transalta Corp. | $950,000 | $3,567,160 | $4,517,160 |
| 75 | Stephen MacPhail | CI Financial Corp. | $750,000 | $3,750,000 | $4,500,000 |
| 77 | Jose Boisjoli | BRP Inc. | $981,309 | $3,449,859 | $4,431,168 |
| 78 | Mark Davis | Chemtrade Logistics | $756,417 | $3,649,430 | $4,405,847 |
| 79 | Murray Taylor | IGM Financial Inc. | $953,333 | $3,431,810 | $4,385,143 |
| 80 | Kevin A. Neveu | Precision Drilling Corp. | $752,885 | $3,563,386 | $4,316,271 |
| 81 | Christopher Huskilson | Emera Inc. | $875,000 | $3,439,895 | $4,314,895 |
| 82 | Jerry Fowden | Cott Corp. | $837,500 | $3,371,688 | $4,209,188 |
| 83 | Rod N. Baker | Great Canadian Gaming Corp. | $525,000 | $3,615,015 | $4,140,015 |
| 84 | Alexander Fernandes | Avigilon Corp. | $469,227 | $3,597,346 | $4,066,573 |
| 85 | Michael Medline | Canadian Tire Corp. | $950,000 | $3,038,241 | $3,988,241 |
| 86 | Pierre Shoiry | WSP Global Inc. | $973,750 | $3,001,580 | $3,975,330 |
| 87 | Myron Stadnyk | Arc Resources Ltd. | $570,000 | $3,401,428 | $3,971,428 |
| 88 | John Thornton | Barrick Gold Corp. | $3,195,860 | $740,276 | $3,936,136 |
| 89 | Thomas Heslip (Former CEO) | Granite REIT | $409,231 | $3,500,000 | $3,909,231 |
| 90 | Phillip Pascall | First Quantum Minerals Ltd. | $1,329,478 | $2,557,423 | $3,886,901 |
| 91 | John Chen | Blackberry Ltd. | $1,125,400 | $2,724,236 | $3,849,636 |
| 92 | Pierre Beaudoin (Executive Chairman, President & CEO) | Bombardier Inc. | $820,700 | $3,100,100 | $3,846,900 |
| 93 | Michael Dilger | Pembina Pipeline Corp. | $657,500 | $3,172,448 | $3,829,948 |
| 94 | Rupert Duchesne | Aimia Inc. | $938,077 | $2,888,759 | $3,826,836 |
| 95 | Jeffrey Carney | Igm Financial Inc. | $916,667 | $2,892,006 | $3,808,673 |
| 96 | Thomas Schwartz | Canadian Apartment Properties REIT | $787,590 | $2,942,668 | $3,730,258 |
| 97 | Jochen Tilk | Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan | $1,050,933 | $2,666,950 | $3,717,883 |
| 98 | Anthony Caputo | ATS Automation Tooling Systems Inc. | $809,100 | $2,907,900 | $3,717,000 |
| 99 | Geoffrey A. Burns | Pan American Silver Corp. | $735,000 | $2,965,605 | $3,700,605 |
| 100 | Eric La Flèche | Metro Inc. | $849,993 | $2,841,449 | $3,691,442 |
* “Other Compensation” includes bonuses, shares, options, pension and any other payments. Full details at CCPA.
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