As of the most recent disclosures released in March 2025, the answer is clear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kenneth Hartwick, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ontario Power Generation (OPG), is the highest paid public employee in Canada.<\/strong> According to the latest data, he earned $2,018,436 in 2024<\/strong>. This continues a long-running pattern where OPG\u2019s top executive consistently sits at the very top of public-sector compensation rankings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This isn\u2019t an outlier year, either. When you look across provinces, executives from Ontario Power Generation and other provincial Crown corporations<\/strong> dominate the highest-paid positions in Canada\u2019s public sector. Energy trading, nuclear operations, and large-scale infrastructure management tend to drive the largest salaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The broader top tier includes senior leaders at Powerex and BC Hydro, major hospital CEOs, transit executives, and investment managers overseeing public endowments. In contrast, elected officials earn far less. The Prime Minister of Canada earns about $406,200<\/strong>, Ontario Premier Doug Ford earned $209,974 in 2024<\/strong>, and Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow earned $225,093<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The data makes one thing clear: in Canada, the highest public-sector pay is concentrated in Crown corporations, healthcare administration, and public investment management<\/strong>, not politics.<\/p>\n\n\n\nTop Earners in the Canadian Public Sector (2024 Earnings)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n