Ontario Sunshine List – Complete Guide, Data & Insights

Public sector employees earning $100,000+ in salary and taxable benefits.

Inflation, collective bargaining increases, salary progression, and the lack of salary threshold indexation.

Yes — if the bonus is considered taxable income, it is included.
Non-taxable benefits (e.g., some allowances) are not included.

Usually late March each year.

No. Records remain permanently once published.

The data is provided directly by public-sector employers. It is generally accurate but may include:
– Small rounding differences
– Occasional errors by employers
– Variations in how taxable benefits are reported
PublicPayPulse cleans and standardizes data for easier analysis.

You can search by name, employer, position, or sector using the Sunshine List search tool on PublicPayPulse

Typically:
– Healthcare (nurses, doctors, executives)
– Education (school boards, universities)
– Municipalities
– Policing & emergency services

Possible reasons include:
– Overtime (common in healthcare & policing)
– Retroactive payments
– Payout of unused vacation or severance
– Temporary acting assignments

Yes. Police services and emergency workers are among the most commonly listed due to overtime and collective agreements.

Yes — especially principals, vice-principals, board administrators, and senior educators whose pay exceeds $100,000.

PublicPayPulse provides rankings by:
– Top 100 earners
– Sector
– Employer
– Position
Your users can sort by salary, year, and organization.

Yes — if total earnings exceeded $100,000, even part-time employees are included.

Overtime can dramatically increase salary totals, particularly in healthcare, transit, and policing.
Only taxable benefits are included, not full benefits packages.

No. Pension contributions, employer-paid benefits, and non-taxable allowances are not included.

The Sunshine List has been published annually since 1996.
PublicPayPulse may publish historical trends and multi-year comparisons.