The 2020 Sunshine List

Four Pelham bureaucrats topped $140K in salary last year A spring tradition, the Ontario Sunshine List—which shines a ray of light on the province’s bureaucrats and elected officials making more than $100,000 a year— was released March 19, and a doze

Four Pelham bureaucrats topped $140K in salary last year

A spring tradition, the Ontario Sunshine List—which shines a ray of light on the province’s bureaucrats and elected officials making more than $100,000 a year— was released March 19, and a dozen Town of Pelham employees made the cut in 2020.

Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) David Cribbs led the way, with a salary of $182,274 last year.

Cribbs’ salary represents the highest ever on record for a Town of Pelham employee, eclipsing the $176,000 that former CAO Darren Ottaway made in 2016. Still, Cribbs’ high salary placed him only in the 65th percentile of all public service CAO positions in Ontario.

Including Cribbs, four Town employees raked in more than $140,000 in 2020. Fire Chief and Chief Bylaw Enforcement Officer Bob Lymburner came in second at $149,202; Director of Community Planning and Development Barb Wiens was third at $146,716; followed by Treasurer and Director of Corporate Services Teresa Quinlin, at $144,438.

Perhaps more notable than the salaries on this year’s Sunshine List were the increases. Eight of the 12 Pelham public employees on the list earned 5.8 percent or greater last year over 2019. Chief Building Official and Drainage Superintendent Michael Zimmer received 9.8 more compared to the previous year, jumping from $114,462 to $125,671. Public Works Manager Ryan Cook and IT Manager Michael Guglielmi both received some six percent more income.

For reference, the average Canadian worker received a 2.7 percent raise in 2019, the last year on record, according to consultant agency Normandin Beaudry.

Not all Pelham bureaucrats earned more, however. Quinlin was actually paid one percent less in 2020, likely owing to the fact she served as interim CAO for a portion of 2019, prior to Cribbs’ hiring. The newest addition to Pelham’s Sunshine List is Library CEO Amy Guilmette, who appeared on the annual list for the first time with a 2020 salary of just over $102,000.

At the Regional level, Niagara CAO Ron Tripp was paid $230,899 last year—almost $22,000 more than the Premier of Ontario, Doug Ford. Yet in a year dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Region’s top earner was Acting Medical Officer of Health Dr. Mustafa Hirji, at $296,583.

In terms of local elected officials, 23-year-old Conservative MPP Sam Oosterhoff made $133,217 last year, unchanged from 2019.

The entire Ontario Sunshine List is available for public viewing at ontariosunshinelist.com.