CEOs at top charities earn top dollar

Many of the biggest charitable organizations headquartered in Ontario pay their top executives more than $250,000 a year, according to data compiled by CBC News.

Charitable agencies that receive more than $1 million in annual funding from the Ontario government are required to disclose top salaries on theprovince'sSunshineList of public-sector earnings.

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This reveals the salaries paid by some of Canada's most well-known charities, including the Canadian Red Cross, the Salvation Army and the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB).

Research by CBC News found 20senior executives earning more than $250,000 at registered charities based in Ontario.

Topping the list is Piers Handling, director and CEO ofthe Toronto International Film Festival, earning $352,260 in 2016.

Top salaries at charities on Ontario Sunshine List 2016:

• Piers Handling,$352,260,Toronto International Film Festival Inc.,Director& CEO.
• GeorgeHabib,$342,831,Ontario Lung Association,President & CEO.
• JohnRafferty,$326,300,The Canadian National Institute for the Blind,President & CEO.
• David SamuelHillier,$322,877,Shepherd Village (seniors' care),President & CEO.
• ConradSauve,$321,299,The Canadian Red Cross,President & CEO.
• BarryBisson,$316,731,Shad Valley International (education),President.
• MedhatMahdy,$305,303, YMCA of Greater Toronto, President & CEO.
• Paul Goodyear, $303,956, The Governing Council of the SalvationArmy, Territorial financial secretary.
• AnthonySargent, $299,999, Luminato(Toronto Festival of Arts), CEO.
• MyroslavKlymkiw, $297,440,Canadian Film Centre, CEO.
• MicheleMaheux, $284,279, Toronto International Film Festival, Executivedirector and chief operating officer.
• KevinFrey, $268,836, Right To PlayInternational, CEO.
• JuliaDumanian, $268,749, Canadian Hearing Society,President &CEO.
• Catherine Macdonald,$264,953, Ontario Society For the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals,CEO.
• SusanneGillespie,$264,300, Pathways to Education Canada,President &CEO.
• SharonBroughton,$258,411, Kids Help Phone,President &CEO.
• GeoffCape,$255,329,Evergreen(urban sustainability),CEO.
• DeborahSevenpifer,$253,784,YMCA of Greater Toronto,Chief financial officer.
• AndriaSpindel,$252,709, March of Dimes Canada, President & CEO.

The salaries appear to be proportionateto the size of these organizations, according to the head of an agency that analyzes the value-for-money impact of Canadian non-profits.

Large operating budgets to manage

"These are large charities with large operating budgets and large staff requiring management," said KateBahen, managing directorof Charity Intelligence.

The largest charities on the list, and their annual operating budgets are:

• Canadian Red Cross:$313 million.
• Salvation Army:$218 million.
• YMCA of Greater Toronto:$213 million.

The two smallest charities on the list are arts-related. The Toronto Festival of Arts Culture and Creativity (Luminato)has an $11-million annual operating budgetand 23 full-time staff, while the Canadian Film Centre has a budget of$11.2 million and42 full-time staff.

Bahenand her staff atCharityIntelligenceanalyzedthe salarydata against the organizations' budgets.Shesaid the salaries aregenerally"in line with the size of theorganizationand the size of the staff that requires management."

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Rather than looking solely at salaries to determine whether a charity deserves support,Bahensaid donors should consider such things as financial transparency,accountabilityand administrativeefficiency.

"We're not seeing excessive compensation" at charities in Canada, saidBahen."Some Canadiandonors believe that people who work for charities should not receive anysalaries. That's a little unrealistic in 2017."