Top‐end salaries and the <scp>O</scp>ntario public sector

AbstractGomez and Wald (2010) found that Ontario salary disclosure did not restrain top university salaries. We provide evidence that supports and extends this conclusion by finding that since 1996, with the exception of school boards, Ontario public sector top salaries have increased at about the same rate as top‐end salaries for the province as a whole. The time path in top public sector salaries is much smoother, suggesting short‐run insulation from private sector markets. We consider alternative theories of the surge in top‐end incomes, noting that the rise in Ontario top public salaries had no direct link with international trade and occurred without declining unionization. One possibility is that reduced top marginal tax rates improved the bargaining position of high‐salaried employees by enhancing the gains of outside offers.

Top‐end salaries and the Ontario public sector Journal Articles