The same prairie grain farmers who are not told by the CWB what their grain is actually sold for can relax in the knowledge that they at least know the exact amount of a fat bonus for Wheat Board employees this week;
OTTAWA — The Canadian Wheat Board is handing out $1,000 Christmas bonuses to its 500 employees in recognition of the “stress” and “strain” they have been under during the Winnipeg-based agency’s fight with the Harper government.
The special payout was announced to staff Thursday morning by board chairman Ken Ritter and newly minted president Greg Arason, who was appointed to the position Tuesday by Agriculture Minister Chuck Strahl.
However, the bonus is not only raising concern among farmers, but also among CWB employees who are wondering whether it is “hush money” designed to buy their silence in what has become a pitched political battle over the future of the world’s largest marketer of wheat.
“The whole thing was really quite surreal,” one employee said of the announcement in the cafeteria of the wheat board’s Winnipeg offices. “One moment we are locked in a battle with the government, and 24 hours after our very popular president (Adrian Measner) is fired, we are told we are getting $1,000 bonuses. Is this hush money? Am I supposed to abide by a new president’s rules, which are contrary to what this company has always been about?”
Or is it hush money from the board? Them’s the folks that approved the payment. If you want surreal, check out this quote from Manitoba director, Bill Toews;
“If farmers are concerned about what we did (authorizing the bonuses), they will have to place that responsibility on Mr. Strahl, not the board.”
Oddly enough, there seems to be no mention of this $500,000 expenditure at the CWB website. One would think that an announcement applauding “the generosity and gratitude of western grain farmers” would be front and center!
More – A commentor at Agri-ville;
Is this for real??
I hope this was a early April fools Day joke!! Wake up all you CWB supporters!!
I just got my final payment today for LAST YEARS CROP (could you imagine if you sold Canola and got paid for it a year later), anyway I got a final payment on my #3hrsw for $1351.19, and on a thirteen hundred dollar cheque I had $50 deduction for Wheat & Barley Research, and a $30 adminstration charge.
And he still doesn’t know what his wheat sold for.
Good catch by commentor “Charles” –
One employee said, “Am I supposed to abide by a new president’s rules, which are contrary to what this company has always been about?”
If non government employees said this to a reporter, they would be fired before the next day,of course you abide by your president’s rules thats what presidents are there for.
Lay off of them, already. They are clearly entitled to their entitlements, like all good Liberals.
Optics of this are terrible….. I agree, wheat farmers should get a $1000 bonus as well as its their money…. Looks like an attempted poke in the eye of the Government if anything, but I think its going to be egg on the CWB directors faces as I don’t see this going over well with actual farmers and the general public in light of what has been going on.
rd
This is the best thing to happen to those that want to end the monopoly. This just more evidence of the stupidity, arrogance and self serving nature CWB beast.
Stunning arrogance that the Wheat Board isn’t even willing to take responsibility for their own decision to give the bonus. Yah right, blame it on the government.
Maybe it’s their severance package.
Half a million bucks spent on Christmas bonuses????
Holy crap!!!
More featherbedding, by yet another group of money junkies, stealing from working men & women.
With no justification but there own greed. Swag for free, with nothing done for those they are supposed to represent. Wouldn’t we all like to raise our own pay. I think it should be illegal myself for these popinjays to vote there own benefits plus wages. Its immoral.
Like say the CEO who got a 53 million bonus for taking the company from debt to 17 billion a year. He deserved it. He produced a profit, as well saved jobs.
These leeches have done nothing but hurt farmers & want there 30 pieces of silver to go with there neglect. If not malfeasance.
Kinnda like the Edmonton city council. Only in their case gone, real gone. Next election. If all there hate mail in both papers is any guide. We shall see where this goes as well.
Just out of curiosity does anyone really believe giving more money to elective offices improves the candidates? Seems to me it only attracts, opportunists, crooks, lazy ego trippers ,with the usual bevy of control freaks.
I thought public service was a duty. Not a get rich scam? What do you think?
this is the same CWB that would, twice a year, send to REVENUE CANADA, a list of ALL FARMERS AS WELL AS THEIR PERMIT (wheat board permit#s) so that REVENUE CANADA could guarnashee any monies owing TO THE FARMER up to the amount of income tax, gstax owing to REVENUE CANADA…..
example…Mr Farmer owes $5000 to REV CANADA, then REV Canada would send a guarnishee to the CWB with the permit # (that which they obtained from the CWB in the first place)and if Mr Farmer was entitled to a $5000 payment for the sale of grain, REV Canada would take the whole $5000 away from Mr.Farmer…how can the CWB say they have the best interest of Mr Farmer when they go behind their backs and gives out CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION, to REV Canada, so that they can again screw Mr.Farmer out of another $5000…..if you doubt my story check with someone in authority at REV Canada who DARES talk to you about it???????? I AM SURE THE FARMERS DO NOT KNOW OF THIS TWICE YEARLY PROCESS….screw the farmer is the motto of the CWB……any farmer who wondered how REV Canada knew of their amounts of cash owing them, they only have to look at their oh so wonderful CWB….I swear on a stack of bibles this is true……… check it out
‘Resolve’!!!
I am thinking a few more Western farmers have found new resolve at this news, that employees were given these bonuses.
Resolve… to find out for how many years this has been going on.
Resolve….coupled with *real stress*…daily stress, of not knowing if the money was there to plant their crops, watching every storm cloud, or lack of rain cloud, or being unable to get their crops in on time…
I’d suspect that a bonus plan this size has been in the works long before the new guy came on board.
First order of business…get the Auditor General to have a ‘real’ look into the CWB books.
Does anyone know if this Bill Toews is related to Vic Toews, MP? Would love to be a fly on the wall at their Christmas gathering!
Combine a monopoly and a government agency…and this is the sort of arrogance one can always expect.
I don’t believe Bill and Vic are related. Toews is a common name in that neck of the woods.
So nice, coming at Xmas and all …
Score another one for the CWB/FLB.
(that’s Fat Lazy Bureaucrats).
Hush money, LOL.
It’s shut up and act like a victim for the camera’s money. Bill Toews and the other mega-socalist directors have no problem blowing away another 1\2 million dollars of farmers money in another boo-hoo, poor us PR stunt. This is disgusting.
CWB staff average salary is $80,000.00 a year, how many farmers make that?
Sounds like the Enron of wheat.
The one thing that has become painfully obvious to everyone in this CWB fiasco is that there is absolutely no question that the blatantly political CWB has been used by the Liberals as part of their re-election machine for all these years. Even to the point of hiring a Liberal campaign organizer as ‘lobbyist’. And having Liberal organizers sit in on Board meetings.
In a free country, I have no problem with other farmers supporting the CWB knowing full well that they are part of the Liberal election machine. However those of us who absolutely hate Liberals and want nothing to do with them, need and demand to have the ability to sell our grain to other non-political grain merchants who are not part of the Liberal party of Canada.
Why should we be forced to support a Liberal party that has been easily the most crooked political party in recent Canadian history with our grain? Western Canadian grain farmers deserve a better system.
How would those farmers who support CWB single desk marketing like it if they were forced to buy all their farm machinery at one government operated farm machinery company? I think if that were the case they would vote to get rid of the CWB ASAP.
I thought the cwb answers to western farmers not the fed. gov’t…flip-flop-flip-flop which is it the farmer controlled cwb or the gov’t controlled cwb?
BOHCA
Bend Over Here it Comes Again.
Remember when “Honest Ralphie?” was Ag Minister? Heh
I have yet to really see any comment on the Web or in papers about the unfairness to everyone else caused by this monopoly. If you assume that the board is doing it’s job and getting better prices for growers, the only result can be higher prices for products made from grains. Donations to the Daily BREAD Food Bank in Toronto cost more. I think breakfast cereals are a ridiculous price. From 10 years experience a while ago in the beer industry with one of teh big 2, I know that the cost of Barley was the single highest component of the price of beer, over and above labour and even marketing. The result – gradually increasing addition of adjunct, usually cheap corn to get sugar. So the monopoly board is directly responsible for the deterioration of Canadian Beer. They should all be shot.
One employee said,”Am I supposed to abide by a new president’s rules, which are contrary to what this company has always been about?”
If non government employees said this to a reporter, they would be fired before the next day,of course you abide by your president’s rules thats what presidents are there for.
A stress bonus? Public and government agencies are so unfathomable. Here, have some extra money, you poor dears. Spare a thought for those suffering slobs in the private sector who receive a bonus (if at all) only when they and their employers do well.
this is what i sent to the directors of the cwb after i read this story, btw if this payment was related to the final payment of how much wheat delivered to the CWB at .22cents/bu. it is aboout 4500 bu…. irrelevant but interesting.
Kyle,
Do you really think that when farmers voted for you it gave you carte blanche to spend their money like this????? http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/subscriber/canada/story/3822013p-4421238c.html
How this will help the CWB’s fight to stay relevant as a marketing agency is beyond comprehension. Well, good move, this will solidify my resolve to get into the debate and rest assured that I will not be fighting for single desk marketing…..better pad your expense claims as quickly as possible I don’t think there will be another election for directors like this.
A decsion like this really questions the credibility of a CWB that is accountable to farmers. Us back country hicks get just what we deserve when we vote for the likes of you.
I look forward to your justification of this decision.
Another tip: The Australian government today took some baby steps towards ending the AWB’s single desk monopoly, by approving the export permits of two private grain traders out of a total of 46.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,20965248-31037,00.html
There’s already bickering over the decision, with pro-choice politicians criticizing the government for not approving more export permits. However, it is now official: Canada is the only nation in the world with a single-desk wheat marketer.
Naturally, there’s not a peep out of the MSM about this event, at least so far. It’s doubtful you’ll see it referred to on the CWB’s website.
But the “overwhelming majority” of farmers want to keep it, the Star said so. Must be true….
http://www.thestar.com/News/article/163816
up till now i didn’t know how i would vote on the future of the cwb, but this fixes it for me. the stunning arrogance of ken rotter and his liberal buddies is too much. if the workers of the cwb think they are stressed.. come down to the farm and see what stress really is.. the board members should all be fired. talk about hands in your pocket. thanks you bunch of bastards for spending our money so wisely.
The CWB board is acting the way you would expect any left-wing group to act – mint some victims and pay them off with someone else’s money.
Wonder how those that refuse to be victims will be treated.
I am not a farmer, but this situation is so surreal, it seems like something out of Kafka. Some farmers can sell their wheat to anyone for whatever they want, while others can only sell to the CWB, at their price? The CWB keeps its dealings secret from the farmers it serves? The CWB blows a half million on its employees while farm incomes are at record lows?
Unfortunately, my MP is a Liberal. No chance he’s going to help rectify the situation.
My sympathy to Western farmers!
I would like to ask farmers why they continue to place control of their finances in the hands of a Liberal/Socialist/Communist entity? Surely there are other crops that can be grown which are independent of the CWB. Is farming not a business that should be conducted with profit in mind?
It is unbelievable so many farmers are still supporting this blatantly dishonest LIBERAL agency.
300,000 salary for 2006, 750,000 handshake, 500,000 bonus. How many bushels of wheat and barley were sold for that much money to be available. No wonder final payments are next to nil.
This $1000 bonus is really a reminder (Liberals call it a retainer) to VOTE LIBERAL in the federal election coming later this year. This is Liberal corruption at its finest. Gee I wonder what those fine CWB supporters have to say about this cavalier abuse of farmer money? And the Liberal gravy train rolls on!
saskboy,
I believe you. Ag Canada took over accounting debts from CWB in early 90’s. One year (1993 I think) the advance payment for wheat(or barley?) was more than the final price (low grade due to weather)and farmers in my area ended up owing $ to CWB for that years delivered crop. (crop insurance barely covered costs)
Anyways, my GST refund and income tax returns (off farm work) were snatched by Revenue Canada to pay the CWB. When I called Rev Cda about my zero tax return, they told me the only government money they couldn’t touch was child tax benefit (4 kids); and because Ag Cda was a gov’t agency, they could flag my Rev Cda account.
True story, I swear.
Remember the years of the Sask 6 year lease back plan(90’s) where banks had to lease the land back to the farmer? After the banks howled
they were given priority on your grain income; and farmers had to go to their financial institution and have the bank manager sign off saying you didn’t owe them money before the Pool/Ugg would give you your cash advance payment?!!!!
Do u suppose this is what deon was doing in winnipeg, was it yesterday or the day before? Man, this makes my blood boil, useing farmes as pawns. Stress they say, what about the farmers who have stress, this is their money, not the cwb’s. What arrogance! what free loaders! I pray a bunch of you cwb supporters wake up. If this doesn’t show you how much they care about you…nothing will!
I asked a farmer the other day what he though of this cwb controversy.
He said, we should make them work for it. I said how do you do that…He said, fire em all and start over… Well…It looks to me like we should just fire em all!
Anyone want to buy some #1 cwrs 13.5 feed wheat?
i can sell you that myself! with a little hagglin thrown in.
I’m with you Buffalo Bean; lets get those books cracked. The shredders will be running full tilt over Christmas, I am sure – maybe that is why all the CWB employees got bonus’s – so they won’t rat out about the holiday activity in the WB offices.
This bonus for the wbc employees really makes my blood boil too. Now, when the millions misplaced or diverted or ???; the board must retroactively (all the way back to the date the outfit was set up) pay each and every farmer who ever sold that outfit grain, the money that they are owed. The money should come out of the hides of the past and present directors if it is not kicking around in secret bank accounts or trust funds. If the directors cannot be shaken down for all the $$ owed to all farmers then the outfit must sell the assets and pay the farmers who lost $$ first. People must demand accountability – good for farmers that our PMSH is big on accountability. Farmers will get their bonus if PMSH has anything to go on…right now is the time to get it – if the Dippers or the dyonidits (Liberanos) get themselves re-elected the WB will be an Absolute Grain King with a absolute tyrant backing the corruption.
Merry Christmas to everyone who has dropped by here and a Merry Christmas to you, Kate.
Seems to be a lot of people here who know nothing about the CWB and its operations. But its good to know these folks would prefer big multinational grain companies (such as ADM which has former PM Brian Mulroney on its board of directors – gee, isn’t he an advisor to Stephen Harper?) who answer to their shareholders.
Maybe those farmers who complain about the about of money they make should clue in to the fact that a career change might be in order instead of laying blame elsewhere. Just because dad was a farmer doesn’t mean you should have been one too. Goodness knows taxpayers are tired of bailing out these farmers everytime they can’t grow a crop.
Dieter,
Hmmmm let me see,you don’t farm, but support the CWB and, obvioulsy don’t like farmers, sees a Conservative conspiracy as motivation…. ahhh it makes sense now you are Liberal voter who works for the CWB. Either that or are the son of the troll maryjane.
Hi Albertaman,
Good guesses but … BEEP … you’re out. Not Liberal (or NDP or Green or BLOC) and never actually said I supported the CWB (don’t work there either). One doesn’t have to support something to point out facts (positive or negative) about it.
Oh … and I never said I didn’t like farmers either. And I never said I was or wasn’t a farmer. You should adjust the prescription on your detective glasses. Seems you folks like to dish it out but can’t take it yourselves. Not a surprise.
You didn’t actually bother to address the issues raised (as briefly as they were) such as constant bailouts for farmers who can’t hack it in a government-assisted environment. Can’t imagine how they’d succeed in a real free market … just like the US with all the subsidies.
No concerns that Brian Mulroney is on the BOD of ADM and has the ear (and maybe more) of the PM? It’s perhaps a bit of common sense to be suspicious when the big grain companies who answer only to their shareholders are interested in something that will have a huge impact on Western Canada (positive or negative).
And I’m Albertan too!
Dieter,
One first must have been “dished” something that would make at least a semblance of sense before one would feel “dished” to.
When one reaches for a broad stroke and paints himself superior over others” seems to be a lot of people here who know nothing about the CWB and its operations” without offering evidence that they could actually teach us something they are usually an empty shell. The conspiracy theories and the ignorant comments on farm subsidies is a dead giveaway. I don’t farm and never have but do know that farm subsidies in Canada are a tiny fraction of what they are elsewhere in the western world. Unfortunately the agriculture industry in Europe and the U.S. is heavily subsidized leaving our industry exposed to unfair competition. What exposes your ignorance even further is your own conflicted position by implying that those who want freedom to market their grain and freedom from the nanny state are being duped by some flimsy conspiracy theory involving Harper and Mulroney.
Canadian farmers because of how little they have been subsidized have had to become the most efficient producers in the world and are easily blowing doors off their heavily subsidized U.S. and European counterparts when it come to productivity. I have been close to the industry for 3 decades and seen first hand how much more advanced our producers are especially grain production.
However, I must profess that we here at SDA do not have near the knowledge and expertise you seem to possess.
Hi Albertaman,
You can read whatever you want into my comments and make assumptions as you seem to enjoy doing. Why are you not also be criticizing others in these postings for doing exactly what you accuse me of doing? Painting broad strokes? Yikes – plenty of that in these postings including your own!! I guess it’s alright if their postings align with your way of thinking. But anyone who questions or criticizes must be a Liberal .. oooh .. so scary 🙂
As for the CWB, you can consult many independent reports from respected agricultural economists who have no vested interest in the CWB who will confirm that it is has given farmers an advantage (Kraft, Furtan, and Tyrchniewicz to name one). There are, of course, other reports, like those from Carter and Loyns, that criticize the single-desk but one should take the time to consider all reports and the biases of those writing them.