"Absolutely ridiculous": Metro Vancouver exec made $700K last year and people are upset

Pushback over a big paycheck for an executive at Metro Vancouver is getting a lot of attention and questions from taxpayers.

Jerry Dobrovo​​lny, Metro Vancouver’s chief administrative officer, earns a yearly salary of $451,949, according to a finance report set to go before the committee this week.

If you add $37,000 in expenses and $222,578 in taxable benefits, the total for 2023 comes to about $711,500. Those benefits include a one-time retroactive pay bump following a review, as well as health and pension benefits.

Jerry Dobrovo​​lny was the City of Vancouver’s Chief Engineer before starting at Metro Vancouver in 2019. (YouTube)

Metro Vancouver is responsible for regional-scale services like water and sewage, regional parks, and infrastructure projects. More than 20 municipalities form the Metro Vancouver governing body, and its board appoints the Commissioner/Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) to manage the day-to-day operations.

Metro Vancouver

First reported by Global News, the salary announcement has raised more than a few eyebrows.

Under management of Mr. Dobrovolny,
every project is delayed, every project costs us billions and billions more.
Every year there is a problem with some project and he is still there and even getting bonuses!!! 🤦‍♀️

When somebody will be responsible?
This happens EVERY YEAR

— Hortenzia (@Hortenzia19) June 15, 2024

“Under management of Mr. Dobrovolny, every project is delayed, every project costs us billions and billions more,” one person wrote in part on social media.

“Absolutely ridiculous,” someone said on X, adding, “You only deserve this kind of salary if you’re curing cancer or some other killer disease.”

Absolutely ridiculous. You only deserve this kind of salary if you’re curing cancer or some other killer disease

— Martin Kendell (@burnabymartin) June 15, 2024

Seems completely reasonable – said no Metro Vancouver taxpayer ever

— Captain Chaos (@CarfreeHighway) June 16, 2024

“Seems completely reasonable – said no Metro Vancouver taxpayer ever,” another person wrote.

Someone else appeared to poke fun. “Sorry, but that’s what it takes to live in Vancouver nowadays. Have you seen rent or grocery prices recently?” they said on Reddit.

Metro Vancouver’s spokesperson told Daily Hive that the salary is comparable to that of other organizations in terms of scope and experience.

“CAO compensation was determined by an independent assessment of the scope of CAO roles within local government, public sector, and crown corporations, across the region and across Canada. The assessment determined CAO compensation by averaging compensation of five organizations of similar scope and size to Metro Vancouver. These organizations are: BC Hydro, BC Ferries, TransLink, ICBC, and Toronto Transit Commission,” Amanda McCuaig, Metro Vancouver spokesperson, said in a statement Monday.

The organization is “responsible for managing a multibillion-dollar budget and employing about 2,000 highly skilled workers,” the statement added.

For those who are concerned that taxpayer dollars are being snapped up through these increases, the spokesperson explained that the average rate equates to about $700 per household and about $58 a month for all the services it provides.

“Although Metro Vancouver is often thought of as local government, its services are primarily that of a utility organization. It is more comparable to other utilities and regional services.”

His salary isn’t too far above that of others within the province. However, it’s well above what elected officials make.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the construction groundbreaking of the Squamish First Nation’s Senakw rental housing complex in Vancouver in September 2022. (@JustinTrudeau/X)

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as a Member of Parliament and as the leader of the country, earns $400,000 in salary in 2024, not including expenses. Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim makes half of that, about $200,000 from 2023 numbers. However, Vancouver City Manager Paul Mochrie earned significantly more, with a salary of $365,000 last year.

Vancouver City Hall (Shawn.ccf/Shutterstock)

In the comment section on Reddit, someone argued it’s apples and oranges.

“Premiers and the prime minister are not exactly appropriate comparables. They’re politicians and simply set policy direction rather than professionals leading an organization,” one user explained.

TransLink CEO Kevin Quinn. (TransLink)

Another person also argued it was fair.

“I hold the position that executives like CEOs make way too much money relative to what workers in the same companies make but this guy’s compensation is pretty much in line with what those others in similar positions make. It’ll be more productive to get angry at pay disparity in general and not at this in isolation,” they said.

President and CEO, BC Hydro Chris O’Riley. (Linkedin)

In the meantime, TransLink CEO Kevin Quinn made a salary of $474,000 in 2023, and BC Hydro President Chris O’Riley made a salary of $406,947 and a total income of $629,766, according to 2023 documents on the BC government’s website.

If you’re curious, the highest-paid executive in BC (from numbers made public) is Thomas Bechard, president and CEO of Powerex, who made $1,308,162.00 in 2023. Powerex is a subsidiary of BC Hydro and is based in Vancouver.

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He’s going to wish he never went to Amsterdam last week on the tax payer dime.

And nothing is more hypocritical than @BradWestPoCo trip to Holland. Looking forward to hear him defend his trip too. It’s a shame. They all get corrupted.

— Surrey Bylaw Department……..……………………………..not (@surreybylawnot) June 16, 2024

Many called out Metro Vancouver and the members who are attending the two-week trip to the International Conference on Urban Drainage and study tour on green infrastructure in the Netherlands right now.

Burnaby Mayor Mike Hurley, Port Coquitlam Mayor Brad West, Anmore Mayor John McEwen, and Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie are in attendance. Outgoing Metro Vancouver Board Chair George V. Harvie decided not to attend last minute because he said he didn’t want to be a distraction.

According to the website, the board chair makes $105,039 per annum, while board and committee members make $525 for meetings up to four hours.

However, travel expenses for last year were in the hundreds of thousands, with West’s alone totalling more than $33,000. View the full travel cost breakdown here.

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story has been updated to clarify and reflect Dobrovo​​lny made more than $700,000 for 2023, however, that figure was not an annual salary.