Norfolk County's 2024 Public Sector Salary Disclosure

In compliance with the Public Sector Salary Disclosure Act (PSSDA) and to ensure transparency and accountability to its residents, Norfolk County has released its 2024 public sector salary disclosure list.  

The 1996 Public Sector Salary Disclosure Act aims to make Ontario’s public sector more open and accountable to taxpayers. Organizations receiving public funding from the Province of Ontario are required to publicly disclose, by March 31 each year, the names, positions, salaries, and total taxable benefits of employees earning $100,000 or more in the previous calendar year.  

The PSSDA, commonly known as the “Sunshine List,” was introduced in 1996 with a $100,000 earning threshold, which has not been adjusted for inflation since its inception. The provincial Sunshine List has seen a 99% increase from 151,375 names in 2018 to 300,570 in 2023. Notably, only 8% of these names would appear on the list if the $100,000 threshold had been indexed to inflation.  

If the $100,000 threshold from 1996 were indexed with inflation, the amount would be approximately $180,000 in 2024, and Norfolk County would have only one employee on the list.  

Key 2024 public sector salary disclosure facts for Norfolk:  

• In some cases, compensation includes one-time payments that do not form part of the normal ongoing base salary of employees, such as acting pay, overtime, retroactive payments, and other required adjustments.  

• 114 staff are included on the list, representing 7.5% of all staff employed by Norfolk County throughout 2024 (including seasonal, part-time, etc.), an increase from 87 employees in 2023.  

• Approximately 42% of staff on the list were funded by sources other than Norfolk County’s Levy, such as the Rate Budget, the Building Reserve, and Provincially funded programs.  

• From 2018 to 2023, the number of Norfolk County employees on the list has increased by 107%. Neighbouring municipalities have also seen significant increases, with Haldimand County experiencing a 96% increase, Brant County a 76% increase, and Oxford County a 234% increase.  

As a single-tier municipality, Norfolk County provides all municipal services to residents, including water, wastewater, roads, recreation, fire, paramedic and social services. The County’s total operating budget for 2025 is $315 million, including gross rate and levy expenditures. Open and ongoing capital works are budgeted to exceed $300 million.  

Norfolk County’s salary disclosure statement has been reported to the province and is available on Ontario's public sector salary disclosure website.