Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Faces Scrutiny Over Spending

Concerns are mounting regarding the financial practices of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), as recent reports reveal a significant increase in taxpayer funding despite claims of budget cuts and layoffs. In December 2023, the CBC announced a reduction of approximately $40 million in its programming budgets for both English and French content. Nevertheless, its costs to taxpayers rose from $1.3 billion in 2022-23 to $1.4 billion in 2023-24.

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) has obtained documents that highlight a troubling trend of rising salaries and management layers within the CBC. While the organization ceased distributing bonuses in response to public backlash, it subsequently approved record-high pay increases amounting to $38 million for the fiscal year 2024-25. This translated to an average pay raise of around $6,000 for each of the 6,295 employees affected, with no employees receiving pay cuts.

The figures reveal a stark contrast to previous years. In 2023-24, the CBC allocated $11.5 million for employee raises, significantly lower than the latest increase. Currently, a staggering 1,831 CBC employees are earning six-figure salaries, costing taxpayers roughly $240 million. The average salary for these employees stands at $131,060, marking a dramatic increase from 2015 when only 438 employees were earning six-figure salaries at a cost of $60 million. This represents a remarkable 318% increase over the past eight years.

The management structure at CBC has also expanded significantly. The CTF’s investigation revealed that the CBC employs more than 250 directors, 450 managers, and 780 producers who all earn over $100,000 annually. Additional roles such as 130 advisers, 81 analysts, and 120 hosts are also compensated more than $100,000 each year. Notably, the CBC redacted the roles of over 200 employees, raising questions about transparency.

The financial burden on taxpayers continues to grow, with the CBC’s new CEO, Marie-Philippe Bouchard, drawing a salary comparable to her predecessor, Catherine Tait, at approximately $500,000 annually. The CBC has faced criticism for its spending practices, with some observers describing its financial management as increasingly disconnected from the public’s expectations.

Despite these expenditures, viewership for the CBC remains low. The CBC News Network captured only 1.8% of prime-time TV ratings, indicating that 98% of Canadian viewers opted for other options. Notably, no CBC entertainment program made it into the top ten ratings, with the highest viewership for a CBC show, The Murdoch Mysteries, reaching around 734,000 viewers, or about 1.7% of the population.

As public scrutiny intensifies, advocates like Franco Terrazzano and Kris Sims of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation argue for fundamental changes to the CBC’s funding model, suggesting that defunding could alleviate the financial strain on taxpayers. The ongoing debate highlights the need for accountability and a reevaluation of public broadcasting priorities in Canada.