Nova Scotia’s 2021 compensation disclosure: every disclosed public-sector compensation for the year, with top earners, sectors, and employers.
In 2021, 5,259 employees at 76 Nova Scotia 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 $125,925 and the median was $115,453 — the disclosure covers only employees above the $100,000 threshold in force that year, not the entire public-sector workforce.
Compared with 2020, the list grew by 910 names (+21%, from 4,349 to 5,259), and the average disclosed compensation fell 1.2% from $127,465.
The highest-paid person on the 2021 list was Administration Mary Bluechardt at Mount Saint Vincent University, at $551,412. The full top 25 is below; for interactive filtering of all 5,259 records, use the data explorer or see the Nova Scotia dashboard for the latest year.
Nova Scotia's $100,000 disclosure threshold has been unchanged since the Act passed in 2010 and is not indexed to inflation, so the number of people disclosed grows as wages rise past a fixed line — year-over-year growth is not by itself evidence of rising pay or headcount. Two further caveats: the province paid out frozen public-sector service awards as lump sums in 2018 and 2019, which pushed a one-time cohort over the threshold in those years; and until 2019 school boards reported under the Education Act rather than this Act, so their earlier figures come from a differently-titled (but equivalent) remuneration schedule.
Top 25 by compensation on the 2021 disclosure. Click a name for their full year-by-year profile.
| Sector | Employees | Avg Compensation | Top Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Universities & Colleges | 2,319 | $138,534 | $551,412 |
| Health | 1,889 | $115,677 | $408,062 |
| Education | 758 | $111,534 | $229,398 |
| Crown Corporations | 149 | $126,808 | $248,621 |
| Government Agencies | 105 | $137,566 | $209,584 |
| Community Services | 24 | $119,185 | $167,141 |
| Housing | 10 | $114,630 | $126,459 |
| Culture & Recreation | 5 | $115,288 | $138,000 |
The 15 employers with the most disclosed employees in 2021.
| Employer | Sector | Employees | Avg Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nova Scotia Health Authority | Health | 1,662 | $114,638 |
| Dalhousie University | Universities & Colleges | 1,108 | $145,574 |
| Halifax Regional Centre for Education | Education | 288 | $111,334 |
| Saint Mary's University | Universities & Colleges | 253 | $142,697 |
| St Francis Xavier University | Universities & Colleges | 208 | $133,494 |
| Izaak Walton Killam Health Centre | Health | 194 | $124,020 |
| Nova Scotia Community College | Universities & Colleges | 177 | $119,031 |
| Acadia University | Universities & Colleges | 172 | $131,711 |
| Cape Breton University | Universities & Colleges | 171 | $128,806 |
| Mount Saint Vincent University | Universities & Colleges | 124 | $136,680 |
| Chignecto Central Regional Centre for Education | Education | 115 | $110,032 |
| Cape Breton Victoria Regional Centre for Education | Education | 101 | $112,521 |
| Nova Scotia Legal Aid Commission | Government Agencies | 90 | $135,324 |
| Annapolis Valley Regional Centre for Education | Education | 67 | $110,531 |
| South Shore Regional Centre for Education | Education | 48 | $111,137 |
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