Aug 29 - Island Health board members get huge pay raise

Good morning !

It’s not quite time to swap out beach towels for flannel blankets, though it may have seemed that way with the gloomy weather this past week.

Thankfully, summer will feel in full swing as we head into a long weekend full of sunshine.

— Robyn

Today’s approx. read time: 7 minutes

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NEWS

BC health authority board directors made $1,400/day after 53% pay hike

The provincial government quietly handed massive raises to dozens of hand-picked health authority board members last year. A little-noticed BC Treasury Board directive issued last summer led to a 53% increase in the average daily wage of health authority board directors compared with the previous year.

Island Health Board Chair Leah Hollins’ paycheque got bigger, with an increase to $62K from $47K, with her annual retainer rising to $26K from $15K. 

However, Hollins attended fewer meetings in 2023-2024—she worked a total of 43 days this year, including half days, but worked 57.5 last year. The pay raise means Hollins received $1,441—increased from $815—for each meeting she attended. 

The meeting fee for each board member, including the chair, jumped to $720 from $500, and each received an annual retainer of $12,940 this year, up from $7,500.

Directors who only attended a meeting or two a month were the most-highly compensated. Island Health Board director Andy Adams, for example, attended 11.5 meeting days and made $23K—roughly $2K for each meeting day. That per-day compensation is approximately equal to that of a person making $400K a year.

Yet unlike other health authorities in the province, Island Health’s board did not spend significantly more overall with these increases, going from $230K for total remuneration in 2022/23 to $280K in 2023/24 (Fraser Valley Health Authority, for example, saw an increase of $110K since last year). But this was due to Island Health’s board being down two directors (Harold Cull’s term began at the end of the 2023-2024 fiscal year and Alana Nast was on leave for most of her term before resigning in December). It’s likely that with a full board of 10 directors, Island Health will see a much larger total annual remuneration.

The pay hikes and increased expenses across BC’s health authorities pushed cumulative remuneration for board members to $2M last year, up from $1.3M in 2022/23. It may be a drop in the bucket for provincial spending on health care, but the pay hikes for those in charge come as BC’s health system is increasingly unable to meet the basic needs of British Columbians.

Premier David Eby said he was “unpleasantly surprised” by the pay increases and will be reviewing them with the finance minister.

Read more from our sister publication Fraser Valley Current about the wage hikes, and how much it’s costing some of BC’s biggest health authorities.

⚠️ Capital Bulletin

Missing person: Search for high-risk missing woman continues. Sevina “Moxie,” 28, was last seen Aug. 20.

Driving today? Check the current traffic situation via Google.

NEWS

Non-profit needs new warehouse space to store plastic bottles

Soap for Hope (SFH) is looking for a little hope of its own—along with room for 10K plastic bottles—because it needs a new storage space.

The charity that helps provide the needy access to essential hygiene products is also environmentally conscious, having collected, cleaned, and saved those thousands of bottles for its It’s a Concrete Idea project.

The idea behind the 18-month program is to repurpose shampoo bottles used at the Fairmont Empress Hotel into filaments to reinforce and prevent cracks in cement. 

“The City of Victoria has used it in front of Crystal Gardens, so we've already tested it, used it,” said C. Anne McIntyre, the non-profit’s founder and executive director. 

“But we've been collecting these bottles since last November.”

So SFH needs a space of at least 15 by 24 feet to fit a new bottle shredder, extruder—and more than 10K plastic bottles. SFH suggests the space be located within a warehouse or building with power and easy access to haul large bins. Ideally, it would be located near its Esquimalt warehouse on William, although McIntyre isn’t “fussy” considering the organization needs a new place by Sept. 13, just two weeks from now, because the landlord who has been donating space for the past year just sold the building. 

SFH says its concrete project could save 50K pounds of plastic waste every year, but finding a place to work in and store plastic is key.

“Without a new space, all our efforts this year will be in vain, and the plastic we have worked so hard to save will end up in the landfill,” SFH said in a release. 

Since 2015, Soap for Hope Canada says it has distributed more than 10 million hygiene products and linens, diverting almost one million pounds from the landfill.

⭐️ Capital Picks

🐢 Shell shocked: A heron seems perturbed by a turtle. [Facebook photo]

🐍 🐸 Battle of the species: Native Western terrestrial garter snake takes on an invasive American bullfrog. [Facebook photo]

🤝 Now hiring: Christmas Installers at Butchart Gardens.

🗞️ In Other News

BC United suspends campaign will endorse Conservatives
Eight weeks before the provincial election, the parties announced their intention to merge in a unite-the-right move to try to beat the NDP. Nominations of BC United candidates will be withdrawn—with some of its candidates running for the Conservatives—and party leader Kevin Falcon will step down, the parties announced yesterday. Premier David Eby called it another move by BC United to distance itself from its previous existence as the BC Liberals. [Vancouver Sun]

Oak Bay townhouse proposal not sitting well with the neighbours
Back in April, Oak Bay council was reminded it's far behind in its provincial requirement to build 660+ new housing units over the next five years, so the building process is being sped up. That could lead to two buildings going up on Lansdowne where a single-family home currently sits. But the 13-unit townhouse proposed for the lot right next to Uplands Golf Club has some detractors who say it would be too big and too tall. [Times Colonist]

Vancouver Island Brewing to lay off workers, outsource ops to Phillips
Some tough-to-swallow news from VIB which said it will close its tasting room on Sept. 14. As of Nov. 1 all its brewing and packaging will be done by Vic’s Phillips. VIB said the impacts of COVID, rising inflation, supply chain challenges, and rising costs of taxes and rent—which it said was going up 35%—combined to force the decisions. VIB said it will keep 10% of its current space on Government for some small batch brewing. [CHEK]

🗓️ Things to do

🎸 Adonis & Valentin Puentes: This talented father-son pair will perform together at Hermann’s tonight. 7pm. [Info]

🎤 Dan Duvall & Friends: Catch this hilarious standup lineup at Heckler’s tonight. 8pm. [Info]

✡️ Jewish-ish: This Fringe show explores Jewish identity and secularism, weaving music and speech, at Wood Hall tonight. 6pm. Running until Saturday. [Info]

💃 Tango, It Takes Two: This Fringe show presents award-winning Argentinian dance company PointeTango at Kirk Hall tonight and tomorrow. 7:30pm. [Info]

😆 Horseface: This funny Fringe show delves into the inner world of a woman dealing with unruly men at SKAM Satellite Studio tonight. 8pm. Running until Sunday. [Info]

🖼️ Four Friends Having Fun: See the work from these local artist friends at ArtSea Gallery. Opens tomorrow, running through Sept. 5. 10am-4pm. [Info]

🎷 A Tribute to Neo Soul: Listen to a timeless blend of jazz, soul, and R&B at Hermann’s tomorrow. 7pm. [Info]

😂 Brad Williams: This popular comedian will perform his standup at The Farquhar at UVic tomorrow. 7pm. [Info]

🎹 New Wave Your Behaviour: See the Fringe story of one man coping with mental health issues through new wave music at the Baumann Centre tomorrow. 6pm. [Info]

☕ Ciarán and Islay Make Coffee: This immersive show will see performers weave a story while serving coffee at Habit tomorrow. 8pm. Running until Sunday. [Info]

🎨 Multiple Organism: See this Fringe show about an artist’s model who takes control of art at Metro Studio. Tomorrow 5:30pm; Sat. 8:45pm. [Info]

🎡 Saanich Fair: Ring in the fall season with this annual fair, featuring rides, games, a farmers market, animals, and more. Fri-Mon. [Info]

🎸 Boy & Bear: See the indie favourites perform at Capital Ballroom. Sun. 8pm [Info]

⛵ Classic Boat Festival: See these classic boats gathered in the Inner Harbour and check out boat racing all weekend. Fri-Mon. [Info]

👀 In Case You Missed It

Wednesday’s headlines: Vic still a cycling town (with lots of solo drivers); Parking near RAP will be tough this weekend; And more. [Aug. 28]

CRD’s climate change plan a little thin. [Capital Daily]

Vic’s new Japanese restaurant opens downtown. [Tasting Victoria]

Backlit Mt. Baker photographed on Pender Island. [Facebook photo] 

Dogsledding (on a skateboard) down Cook. [Facebook video]

200 tickets available for Touchdown Pacific. [Game is Sat.]

That’s it!

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