Heather Wright/The Independent

There were more than 1,200 people at the Lambton-Kent District School Board on the list.

That’s a 38 per cent increase over last year. But the Lambton-Kent board is not alone. 

The province’s Public Salary Disclosure Act list was released for 2024. It reveals all the public employees in Ontario who make over $100,000.

The local public school board had 1,248 people on the list this year, that’s up from 906 in 2023 – a 38 per cent increase.

It’s a trend that as mirrored across the province according to Caroline Mulroney, President of the Treasury Board who released the document March 28. She said “across-the-board salary adjustments, retroactive payments made in the 2024 calendar year and the most recent collective bargaining outcomes” made the Sunshine List swell to 377,665 people.

The salaries cost just $50 billion.

“Nearly half of the growth on the list was driven by the school board sector, with teachers contributing to 87 per cent of this increase.”

The management at the Lambton-Kent board were at the top of that list of 1,248 people. Outgoing Director of Education John Howitt reported a salary of $266,884.74 in 2024. His replacement, Superintendent Gary Girardi made $193,55.26 while the associate director, Brian McKay, reported a salary of $217,440.

Lambton College also had 189 names on the Sunshine List with President Rob Kardas reporting a salary of $304,105.74.

Health care is also well represented. At Bluewater Health, there were 410 people whose salaries were disclosed. Top administrators made the list, but so did nurses and pharmacists.

CEO of Bluewater Health, Paula Reaume-Zimmer had a salary of $319,546.68.

There are 178 people on the Sunshine List working for Lambton County. Medical Officer of Health Dr. Karalyn Dueck tops the list with a salary of $306,353. The county’s CAO, Stephane Thiffeault, is next with a salary topping $268,000.

In the municipal world, there is now only one municipality in all of Lambton without an employee making $100,000; Oil Springs.

Enniskillen registered for the first time on the list for its Clerk/Administrator Duncan McTavish. Dawn-Euphemia had two people on the list, the Clerk/Administrator and the director of public works.

In Sarnia, 283 people are on the Sunshine List, with the CAO Chris Carter making about $270,000, and the Police Chief, Derek Davis, bringing in over $260,000.

St.Clair Township has by far the largest number of staff on the Sunshine List of the smaller municipalities. Seventeen employees made more than $100,000 in 2024 including the clerk, CAO, treasurer and the fire chief.

Stephen Mcauley headed up the list of six employees in Lambton Shores. 

Plympton-Wyoming’s list also included six people, with the CAO Adam Sobanski registering over $163,000 in 2024

The Town of Petrolia also had six people on the Sunshine List, with all of the town’s directors now over the $100,000 threshhold. 

CAO Richard Charlebois, who is also the treasurer, registered a salary over $167,000. 

Ontario Power Generation President Kenneth Hartwick was the highest paid public sector worker in the province with a salary of $2,010,895.76. There are eight OPG employees in the top 20 of the Sunshine List.

Kevin Smith, the head of the University Health Network in London had the largest salary in health care at $883,097.20 and $93,927.19 in taxable benefits.

Meantime, Premier Doug Ford reported a salary of just over $208,000. The salaries of elected officials in Ontario have been frozen since Ford became Premier in 2018.

Sarnia-Lambton MPP Bob Bailey earned over $146,000 for his work at Queen’s Park and as a parliamentary assistant.

Lambton-Kent-Middlesex MPP Steve Pinsonneault did not appear on the 2024 list since he only came to office in May.

Many people, including Mulroney, consider the list “silly” since the base salary has never been adjusted for the rate of inflation since then Premier Mike Harris introduced it in 1996.

If it had been indexed to inflation, the $100,000 base would now be 1,802,497.16.