British Columbia Sunshine List 2021 (FY 2020-21)

British Columbia’s 2021 compensation disclosure: every disclosed public-sector compensation for the year, with top earners, sectors, and employers.

13,031
employees disclosed
$101,168
average compensation
$89,603
median compensation
$934,521
highest compensation

In 2021, 13,031 employees at 120 British Columbia public-sector employers were disclosed on the province’s compensation disclosure (FY 2020-21, the fiscal year ending in 2021). The average disclosed compensation was $101,168 and the median was $89,603 — the disclosure covers only employees above the $75,000 threshold in force that year, not the entire public-sector workforce.

Compared with 2020, the list grew by 1,817 names (+16%, from 11,214 to 13,031), and the average disclosed compensation fell 0.5% from $101,674.

The highest-paid person on the 2021 list was Thomas Bechard (Pres & CEO Powerex) at BC Hydro, at $934,521. The full top 25 is below; for interactive filtering of all 13,031 records, use the data explorer or see the British Columbia dashboard for the latest year.

FY 2025 figures include school district SOFI data (~21K employees over $75K) that wasn't ingested for prior fiscal years; the headcount increase is partly a coverage change, not a workforce change. FY 2010 is missing from the source data.

Highest-paid public-sector employees in British Columbia, 2021

Top 25 by compensation on the 2021 disclosure. Click a name for their full year-by-year profile.

#NamePositionEmployerCompensation
1Thomas BechardPres & CEO PowerexBC Hydro$934,521
2Santa J OnoPresident & Vice-ChancellorUniversity of British Columbia$611,712
3Chris O'RileyPresident & CEOBC Hydro$590,114
4Brenda LeongChair and CEOBC Securities Commission$527,004
5James HamiltonPresidentOkanagan College$495,493
6Benoit MorinPresident & Chief Executive OfficerProvincial Health Services Authority$479,814
7Nicolas JimenezPresident & Chief Executive OfficerInsurance Corporation of BC$467,905
8Andrew SzeriV/P Academic & ProvostUniversity of British Columbia$456,034
9James CasselsPresident and Vice ChancellorUniversity of Victoria$451,917
10David WongEVP, Finance, Tech, Supply Chain & CFOBC Hydro$447,158
11Janet FraserEVP, People, Customer, Corp AffairsBC Hydro$434,482
12Susan BrownPRESIDENT & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICERInterior Health Authority$420,255
13Andrew PetterPresidentSimon Fraser University$409,907
14Charlotte MithaEVP, OperationsBC Hydro$408,928
15Victoria (Eun Hyung) LeePresident & Chief Executive OfficerFraser Health Authority$406,144
16Kathryn E MacNeilPresident & CEOVancouver Island Health Authority$405,088
17Maureen DaschukSVP, Integrated PlanningBC Hydro$403,149
18Shayne RamsayChief Executive OfficerBC Housing Management Commission$394,357
19Gordon JohnsonVice ChairBC Securities Commission$393,574
20Fiona DaltonPresident and CEOProvidence Health Care Society$393,132
21Cathy UlrichPresident & CEONorthern Health Authority$390,771
22Joy JohnsonPresidentSimon Fraser University$389,108
23Jordan TinneySuperintendentSchool District 36 Surrey$385,981
24Linda LupiniExecutive Vice President, Commercial Services, PHSAProvincial Health Services Authority$384,625
25Gail C MurphyVice-President Research and InnovationUniversity of British Columbia$382,495

2021 compensation by sector

SectorEmployeesAvg CompensationTop Compensation
Core Government12,444$97,263$318,244
School Districts253$161,227$385,981
Crown Corporations143$196,113$934,521
Colleges & Institutes97$170,023$495,493
Health Authorities45$260,446$479,814
Universities37$229,723$611,712
Public Service12$202,507$352,204

Largest employers on the 2021 list

The 15 employers with the most disclosed employees in 2021.

EmployerSectorEmployeesAvg Compensation
Province of British ColumbiaCore Government12,444$97,263
BC HydroCrown Corporations14$245,738
Provincial Health Services AuthorityHealth Authorities8$226,367
Royal BC MuseumCrown Corporations8$131,364
Transportation Investment CorporationCrown Corporations8$178,043
University of Northern BCUniversities8$198,782
Vancouver Coastal Health AuthorityHealth Authorities8$243,595
BC Family Maintenance AgencyCrown Corporations7$113,405
BC TransitCrown Corporations7$200,944
Insurance Corporation of BCCrown Corporations7$296,207
School District 39 VancouverSchool Districts7$207,292
School District 72 Campbell RiverSchool Districts7$136,993
Simon Fraser UniversityUniversities7$212,965
Vancouver Community CollegeColleges & Institutes7$169,144
Vancouver Island Health AuthorityHealth Authorities7$273,848

Other years

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British Columbia Sunshine List 2020·British Columbia Sunshine List 2022