Catherine Tait, President and CEO of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) waits to appear before the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage in Ottawa, on Thursday, Nov. 2, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Spencer Colby
OTTAWA – The president of CBC and Radio-Canada won’t say if she’s getting a bonus this year despite the public broadcaster’s plans to cut 10 per cent of its workforce.
Catherine Tait tells a House of Commons committee that it’s up to the board of directors who gets bonuses, which are doled out at the end of March.
Tait says the additional payments are merit-based and only provided to those employees who meet certain targets.
Across all of CBC/Radio-Canada, employees in certain pay bands, managers and executives are eligible to participate in the incentive plan.
Tait did not say if she would opt out of the plan given that the broadcaster is cutting 800 positions to address a $125-million shortfall projected for the next fiscal year.
The committee agreed in a report before Tait’s appearance that it would be inappropriate to grant executive bonuses in light of the looming cuts.
But members of Parliament have no sway over how the independent broadcaster spends its money.
CBC documents released under access to information show more than $99 million in bonuses was awarded to employees between 2015 and 2022.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 30, 2024.
