Business
WATCH: Dance Magic Studio wins Business of the Year in the “11-20 Employee” category
As a proud platinum sponsor of the 2019 Business of the Year Awards, we hope you enjoy these videos, produced by Todayville in association with Are You Social.
Our first story is about Dance Magic Studio, winner of the Red Deer and District Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year Award in the “1-11 Employee Category. Please watch their video below and learn more about this great local company!
“…Dance Magic Studio is committed to providing lessons in a fun, upbeat and positive atmosphere; supported by teachers with a passion for learning and the arts. Our goal is to share our love of dance and music with those in our community while encouraging positive growth and development in every aspect of their lives. Our non-competitive atmosphere aims to nurture self-confidence, personal friendships and lasting, lifetime memories. Personal attention and care is taken in every aspect of your Dance Magic experience…”
There were 2 other finalists in this category. Click on the links to learn more about these amazing companies!
Berry Architecture and Associates
“…Berry Architecture + Associates delivers thoughtful, well-developed, dynamic architectural solutions to clients across Alberta and Western Canada. Its hands-on, client-focused approach enables the team to be fully integrated in a project, supporting clients throughout the process and ensuring success…”
Messinger Meats Artisan Butcher and Bistro
“…At Messinger Meats Mirror we believe that our customers’ needs are of the utmost importance. Our entire team is committed to meeting those needs and as a result – a high percentage of our business is from repeat customers and referrals. We are a family oriented business and we care. We would welcome the opportunity to earn your trust and provide you with only the freshest and healthiest local meat…”
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About the Chamber: The Red Deer & District Chamber of Commerce is the largest and most influential business association in Central Alberta. We are committed to promoting business growth and prosperity in the region by providing networking opportunities, educational and relevant speakers, benefit programs like group insurance and discounted merchant card rates to save you money, and being your advocate on issues that matter. Chamber membership is the most effective way to raise your business profile and capitalize on business development opportunities.
All companies, Chamber members and non-members, are eligible for nomination for an award in their respective category.
Todayville is proud to be a platinum sponsor of the 2019 Red Deer and District Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year Awards.
National
Governor General gets $11,200 raise in 2024, third pay bump in three years
News release from the Canadian Taxpayers Federation
Author: Franco Terrazzano
The Governor General’s salary has increased by $60,000, or 20 per cent, since 2019.
Governor General Mary Simon received a $11,200 raise in 2024, her third pay bump since being appointed to the role in 2021, driving her salary for this year up to $362,800.
“Canadians are struggling to afford a jug of milk or a package of ground beef, so the government shouldn’t be rubberstamping another raise for the governor general,” said Franco Terrazzano, CTF Federal Director. “Can the government show Canadians how they’re getting more value, because the governor general’s paycheque just went up a thousand dollars a month.”
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation confirmed Simon’s salary and latest raise with the Privy Council Office.
“For 2024, the Governor General’s salary, which is determined in accordance with the provisions of the Governor General’s Act … is $362,800,” a PCO spokesman told the CTF.
The Governor General’s salary has increased by $60,000, or 20 per cent, since 2019. Meanwhile, the average annual salary among full-time workers is less than $70,000, according to Statistics Canada data.
Table: Annual Governor General salary, per PCO data
Year |
GG salary |
2024 |
$362,800 |
2023 |
$351,600 |
2022 |
$342,100 |
2021 |
$328,700 |
2020 |
$310,100 |
2019 |
$302,800 |
On top of the $362,800 annual salary, the governor general receives a range of lavish perks, including a taxpayer-funded mansion, a platinum pension, a generous retirement allowance, a clothing budget, paid dry cleaning services and travel expenses.
Former governors general are also eligible for a full pension, of about $150,000 a year, regardless of how long they serve in office.
Even though Simon’s predecessor, Julie Payette, served in the role for a little more than three years, she will receive an estimated $4.8 million if she collects her pension till the age of 90.
The CTF estimates that Canada’s five living former governors general will receive more than $18 million if they continue to collect their pensions till the age of 90.
Former governors general can also expense taxpayers up to $206,000 annually for the rest of their lives, continuing up to six months after their deaths.
In May 2023, the National Post reported the governor general can expense up to $130,000 in clothing during their five-year mandates, with a $60,000 cap during the first year.
Simon and Payette combined to expense $88,000 in clothing to taxpayers since 2017, including a velvet dress with silk lining, designer gloves, suits, shoes and scarves, among other items.
Rideau Hall expensed $117,000 in dry-cleaning services since 2018, despite having in-house staff responsible for laundry. That’s an average dry cleaning tab of more than $1,800 per month.
It’s also enough money to dry clean 13,831 blouses, 6,204 dresses or 3,918 duvets, according to the prices at Majestic Cleaners in Ottawa.
In 2022, Simon’s first full year on the job, she spent $2.7 million on travel, according to government records obtained by the CTF.
Simon’s travel has sparked multiple controversies, including her nearly six-figure in-flight catering tab during a weeklong trip to the Middle East, and her $71,000 bill at IceLimo Luxury Travel during a four-day trip to Iceland.
In the aftermath of the scandals, a parliamentary committee recommended a range of reforms to the governor general’s travel budget, including a regular review of the cost-effectiveness of trips, a reduction in the size of delegations and less spending on snacks and drinks.
“The platinum pay and perks for the governor general should have been reined in years ago,” Terrazzano said. “A serious government would mandate the governor general’s office be subject to access-to-information requests, cut all international travel except for meetings with the monarchy, end the expense account for former governors general, reform the pension and scrap the clothing allowance.”
Media
CBC bonuses total $15 million in 2023
News release from the Canadian Taxpayers Federation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation gave out $14.9 million in bonuses in 2023, according to access-to-information records obtained by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.
This comes on the heels of a CBC announcement in December 2023, just weeks before Christmas, that the public broadcaster was planning to lay off hundreds of employees.
Since 2015, the CBC has issued $114 million in bonuses.
“CBC President Catherine Tait is wrong to hand out bonuses while announcing hundreds of job losses and begging the government for more taxpayer cash,” said Franco Terrazzano, CTF Federal Director. “Tait won’t do the right thing, so Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge needs to step in and shut down these bonuses.”
All told, 1,143 CBC staffers took a bonus in 2023, costing taxpayers $14,902,755. That number could climb even higher as the records indicate the data is up to date “as of Oct. 26, 2023.”
“[Bonus] pay… is a key part of the total compensation of our non-union staff, about 1,140 employees,” Tait recently told a parliamentary committee.
Tait was called to testify at the committee in January 2024 on executive bonuses and planned layoffs at the public broadcaster.
The CBC also dished out $11.5 million in raises (to date) for the 2023-24 fiscal year, with 6,575 employees taking a pay bump, representing 87 per cent of its workforce, according to separate access-to-information records obtained by the CTF. There were no pay cuts.
The CBC has rubberstamped $97 million in pay raises since 2015.
There are now 1,450 CBC staffers taking home a six-figure salary, according to access-to-information records obtained by the CTF.
Since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau came to power in 2015, the number of CBC employees taking a six-figure annual salary has spiked by 231 per cent.
Following Tait’s committee appearance, during which she claimed the public broadcaster was subject to “chronic underfunding,” the federal government announced it was increasing funding to the CBC by 96.1 million.
The CBC will receive $1.4 billion in taxpayer funding for the 2024-25 fiscal year.
Tait’s annual pay is between $472,900 and $623,900, which includes salary, bonus and other benefits, according to the CBC’s senior management compensation summary.
In 2014, Tait’s predecessor, Hubert Lacroix, told a Senate committee his annual bonus was “around 20 per cent.”
“Tait should be taking a pay cut and ending bonuses,” Terrazzano said. “It’s time for the government to end the taxpayer-funded bonuses at the CBC.”
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