EDITORIAL: Hands up everyone who wants a bonus
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News that CBC dished out $14.9 million in lavish bonuses in 2023 comes as a slap in the face to taxpayers struggling to make ends meet.
According to figures obtained by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF), the CBC has paid $114 million in bonuses since 2015. In December of last year, our public broadcaster announced it would lay off hundreds of employees.
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Shortly after those cuts were announced, CBC CEO Catherine Tait was asked a brave question by Adrienne Arsenault, anchor of CBC TV’s flagship news program, The National. In an on-air interview just hours after the massive layoffs were announced, Arsenault asked: “I’m just curious about something. I’m going to presume no bonuses this year?”
Tait responded with weasel words and came across as smug.
“It’s too early to say where we are for this year. We’ll be looking at that like we do all our line items in the coming months,” she said.
They’ve now found time to discuss bonuses. We suspect was a short conversation and a quick vote.
“Hands up everyone who wants extra cash.”
Surprise! Just like that, CBC execs got almost $15 million in “performance pay,” as Tait euphemistically referred to it at a parliamentary committee in January. According to the CTF, 1,143 staffers took a bonus in 2023 and the $14.9 million could climb even higher as that data is only up to date “as of October 26, 2023.”
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In a news release, Franco Terrazzano, federal director of the CTF, said Tait is wrong to hand out bonuses “while announcing hundreds of job losses and begging the government for more taxpayer cash.
“Tait won’t do the right thing, so Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge needs to step in and shut down these bonuses.”
There’s nothing remarkable about CBC’s performance that warrants such plum perks. Tait’s total salary, including bonuses, is between $472,900 and $623,900, according to CBC’s senior management compensation summary.
It’s one thing for private companies to give their executives bonuses. They answer to shareholders and boards of directors. The shareholders of the CBC are taxpayers struggling to pay the rent.
Overpaid civil servants at the CBC have handed Pierre Poilievre a plank for his election platform.
He needs to look no further than CBC for the first $15 million in savings.
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