Strahl orders wheat board to pay its new CEO
JOE FRIESEN
WINNIPEG -- Agriculture Minister Chuck Strahl yesterday obtained a cabinet order to force the Canadian Wheat Board to pay its chief executive officer, who has worked without compensation for the past five weeks.
Greg Arason was appointed to the CEO's job in December, but has been unable to negotiate a contract with the farmer-elected board of directors.
Mr. Arason said he was not agitating for Mr. Strahl's move, but found himself caught in the middle of a power struggle between the minister and his opponents on the board.
In a statement released late yesterday, Mr. Strahl said the agriculture minister has the power to determine the CEO's compensation. The board disagrees, however.
"It is important to have an interim president and chief executive officer in place who is working for farmers and has the tools to direct and manage the day-to-day operations of the CWB," Mr. Strahl said.
"I am sure the CWB board of directors agrees, however some board members have been unwilling to pay Mr. Arason and provide him with the necessary signing authorities to do his job."
Ken Ritter, the wheat board's elected chairman, would not comment on the order yesterday. He said it is highly complex, and the board will not discuss it publicly until it has received legal advice and met to discuss it.
It is another peculiar twist in the protracted and bitter ideological struggle over the board's future. Mr. Arason was appointed to replace Adrian Measner, who was fired by Mr. Strahl for refusing to support the government's plan to end the wheat board's monopoly on grain sales. His firing was met with angry protests, and it was suggested that the board's farmer-elected directors might refuse to agree to a contract with his successor.
Mr. Strahl also used an order in council in October to ban wheat-board employees from advocating for the board's continued existence. The gag order is being fought in court, but Mr. Ritter would not say whether this latest move will also be challenged.
Mr. Arason said he would like to be paid, but this is not the ideal outcome. He expects his compensation would be comparable to the $300,000 a year paid to Mr. Measner.
JOE FRIESEN
WINNIPEG -- Agriculture Minister Chuck Strahl yesterday obtained a cabinet order to force the Canadian Wheat Board to pay its chief executive officer, who has worked without compensation for the past five weeks.
Greg Arason was appointed to the CEO's job in December, but has been unable to negotiate a contract with the farmer-elected board of directors.
Mr. Arason said he was not agitating for Mr. Strahl's move, but found himself caught in the middle of a power struggle between the minister and his opponents on the board.
In a statement released late yesterday, Mr. Strahl said the agriculture minister has the power to determine the CEO's compensation. The board disagrees, however.
"It is important to have an interim president and chief executive officer in place who is working for farmers and has the tools to direct and manage the day-to-day operations of the CWB," Mr. Strahl said.
"I am sure the CWB board of directors agrees, however some board members have been unwilling to pay Mr. Arason and provide him with the necessary signing authorities to do his job."
Ken Ritter, the wheat board's elected chairman, would not comment on the order yesterday. He said it is highly complex, and the board will not discuss it publicly until it has received legal advice and met to discuss it.
It is another peculiar twist in the protracted and bitter ideological struggle over the board's future. Mr. Arason was appointed to replace Adrian Measner, who was fired by Mr. Strahl for refusing to support the government's plan to end the wheat board's monopoly on grain sales. His firing was met with angry protests, and it was suggested that the board's farmer-elected directors might refuse to agree to a contract with his successor.
Mr. Strahl also used an order in council in October to ban wheat-board employees from advocating for the board's continued existence. The gag order is being fought in court, but Mr. Ritter would not say whether this latest move will also be challenged.
Mr. Arason said he would like to be paid, but this is not the ideal outcome. He expects his compensation would be comparable to the $300,000 a year paid to Mr. Measner.
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