NDP blasts possible bonus for Hydro boss

The provincial NDP is taking aim at a government-appointed board it says is discussing a CEO's bonus at a time when Manitobans are struggling to make ends meet.

The New Democrats say the board of Manitoba Hydro went behind closed doors at a July meeting to consider "year-end compensation" — which the party is suggesting is a bonus — for CEO Jay Grewal, according to board minutes obtained through freedom of information.

Though Manitoba Hydro explained such financial incentives were already built into Grewal's contract, the NDP says such a bonus shouldn't be considered when high inflation is straining people's finances.

"With inflation being what it is, with your life getting more expensive each and every day, I don't think anyone wants to see CEOs taking home big compensation packages, big bonuses, least of all when we're talking about a company that is owned by the people of Manitoba," NDP Leader Wab Kinew said at a news conference Friday.

Grewal received a salary of $513,000 in 2021, according to Hydro's compensation disclosure report. It isn't known how much of her salary is the result of financial incentives.

Strike continues while bonus debated

At the time of the in-camera meeting to discuss Grewal's compensation, 230 of Hydro's natural gas workers were on strike to demand wage increases after going years without a contract, the NDP says.

Edward Kennedy, chair of Hydro's board, said in a statement that incorporating financial incentives into the salary of a CEO is a "best-practice pay structure" employed by "Crown-owned utilities across Canada."

In Grewal's case, her bonuses are an accountability measure for reaching key annual goals, Kennedy said.

"It should also be noted that Ms. Grewal's base salary has not increased in the almost four years since she started at Manitoba Hydro," he said.

Kinew wouldn't specify whether Grewal might deserve a bonus in the future, but said the timing isn't right "at this moment of high inflation."

He said Manitobans shook their heads when they learned of grocery store CEOs pocketing bonuses after the pandemic inflated their sales, while the salary bumps for their employees were short-lived.

"But Manitoba Hydro is supposed to be different because you, the people of Manitoba, own it," Kinew said.

"The idea that the PC's are going to make your life more expensive on your Hydro bill and allow a CEO to take a bonus is something that we think this government should answer for."

Hydro didn't answer whether Grewal would receive a bonus for 2022.

Finance Minister Cameron Friesen, the minister responsible for Manitoba Hydro, said the province doesn't have a say in the compensation of executive leadership, but it is left to the utility's board of directors, "in whom we have confidence." The board's members are selected by the government.

The NDP also used the news conference Friday to blast proposed government legislation that would cap rate hikes but also give the province a greater say in an independent body's setting of prices.

Kinew repeated his claim that electricity rates would increase five per cent annually, but that's not what the legislation says.

If the bill passes, the annual rate hike could not be higher than five per cent or the rate of inflation, whichever is lower.

The bill also requires the Public Utilities Board take into account the financial targets set by the province when setting rates, which, the NDP has argued, undermines the board's independence. 

The Tories have tried to wrestle with Manitoba Hydro's debt since taking office in 2016.

Two megaprojects — the Bipole III transmission line and the Keeyask generating station — built under the former NDP government ran a combined $3.7 billion over budget.