Here's how many B.C. government workers got pandemic pay raises, and how much it cost taxpayers, according to a report
A just-released report suggests taxpayers in British Columbia spent millions more during the pandemic on raises for government workers.
According to the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, 33,336 B.C. government workers got raises in 2020, at a cost of approximately $69 million.
In 2021, 28,972 got a pay boost, to the tune of about $47 million. In total, $116,095,813 went to paying workers more over the two-year period, the report from the fiscally-conservative non-profit says.
The data provided by the CTF suggests B.C. was among the provinces giving out the most raises in the last two years, following Ontario (64,958 employees) and Quebec (42,149).
Federally, nearly 313,000 government workers made more during the pandemic. Altogether, the data obtained by the CTF via Freedom of Information Act request suggested 528,347 government workers at the federal and provincial levels got raises.
In a news release Monday, B.C. director for the CTF Kris Sims pointed out many non-government workers took a pay cut, lost their job or saw their business severely impacted during the same time.
"It's unfair to ask them to pay higher taxes so bureaucrats and politicians can get a pay hike," Sims said.
The report from the not-for-profit agency that looks to reduce taxes by cutting government spending said Statistics Canada data shows that in addition to the pay raises, 306,800 more government jobs were added across Canada since the start of the pandemic.
It was not clear which sectors saw increases in headcount and salary, but the pandemic has likely created more work at the government level in areas including health care.
Prior to the pandemic, daily updates from the Health Ministry were not the norm, and several other events have occurred in that two-year span, including unprecedented heat, devastating floods and an escalating opioid crisis.
Still, it's easy to see why some would feel frustrated, especially small business owners who've been drastically impacted by public health restrictions associated with the pandemic.
Tax changes coming into effect in 2022 are likely unwelcome news for many who've struggled to make ends meet, including that those making $40,000 or more this year who will see more of their income deducted federally.
The B.C. government will be increasing its carbon tax later this year, meaning it'll cost more to drive and to heat residents' homes. Federally, the Canada Pension Plan and Employment Insurance tax each cost more, and alcohol taxes are set to go up in April.
In addition, many municipal governments are hiking property taxes, including in Vancouver where the city's new budget includes a higher-than-proposed 6.35 per cent increase.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter banned from NBA
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has been handed a lifetime ban from The National Basketball Association (NBA) following an investigation which found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, the league says.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Attempt to have murder charge quashed against alleged serial killer dismissed by judge
A motion filed by the man accused of killing four Indigenous women in Winnipeg to have one of those murder charges quashed has been dismissed by the judge – weeks before the start of his trial.
Government proposes new policy for federally regulated employees to disconnect from work
In their 2024 budget, the federal government wants to amend the Canada Labour Code, so employers in federally regulated sectors will eliminate work-related communication with employees outside of scheduled hours. If implemented, this would affect roughly 500,000 employees across the country.
Earthquake jolts southern Japan
An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 hit southern Japan late on Wednesday, said the Japan Meteorological Agency, without issuing a tsunami warning.