KITCHENER -- Hospitals and public health employees are among the top public sector earners for 2020.

The annual Ontario Sunshine List was released Friday, naming those who made $100,000 or more during the previous year.

Thanks to the pandemic, it's no surprise the top local earners work in public health and hospitals.

They include:

  • Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang, Medical Officer of Health for the Region of Waterloo - $292,185.61
  • Dr. Nicola Mercer, Medical Officer of Health for Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph - $307,891.86
  • Ron Gagnon, President of Grand River Hospital - $516,745.87
  • Lee Fairclough, President of St. Mary’s Hospital - $283,360.13
  • Patrick Gaskin, President of Cambridge Memorial Hospital - $343,562.01

The province says about 75% of the growth on the annual list is due to increases in hospitals, boards of public health and school board sectors.

Local school officials also made the Sunshine List.

For post-secondary:

  • Feridun Hamdullahpur, President of the University of Waterloo - $474,081.23
  • Deborah MacLatchy, President of Wilfrid Laurier University - $375,692.36
  • John Tibbits, President of Conestoga College - $409,707.37

Local elementary and secondary school boards:

  • Loretta Notten, Director of Education for WCDSB - $241,230.65
  • John Bryant, Director of Education for WRDSB - $257,815.25

Other top earners come from policing:

  • Bryan Larkin, Chief of Waterloo Regional Police Service - $330,811.23
  • Gordon Cobey, Chief of Guelph Police - $240,160.18

Here's the breakdown for local mayors:

  • Berry Vrbanovic, Kitchener Mayor - $105,381.88
  • Dave Jaworsky, Waterloo Mayor - $105.016.30
  • Kathryn McGarry, Cambridge Mayor - $104,553.09
  • Cam Guthrie, Guelph Mayor - $158,576.42

Also on the list, Region of Waterloo Chair Karen Redman, who brought in $180,043.08 last year.

Click here for the full Sunshine List.

According to the province, pandemic-related payments such as significant overtime hours or pandemic pay contributed to higher incomes for some employees.

They also say the average reported salary decreased slightly in 2020, to $125,000 from $127,000 in 2019.