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Chief executive Brad Shaw, JR’s son, was third in the Herald’s 2014 survey, conducted with the assistance of consultants Global Governance Advisors, with earnings of $13.3 million. He topped the list in 2010 with total compensation of $17.3 million. Shaw’s president, Peter Bissonnette, finished sixth in 2014 with $11.6 million in total compensation.

In a regulatory filing, Shaw Communications says its executive compensation is set based on three principles: execution of business strategies, the right combination of fixed and “at risk” pay, and ensuring retention by comparing earnings with peers including BCE Inc., Talisman Energy Inc. and Telus Corp.

But Michelle de Cordova, director of corporate engagement and public policy for Toronto-based NEI Ethical Funds, said none of those criteria support Shaw’s level or method of executive compensation.

“The package as a whole, it’s really hard to understand how those amounts make sense,” she told the Herald.

“It has not been the best year for the company. And if you look at pay in the companies they are measuring themselves against in their benchmarking, the figures we see at Shaw still don’t make a huge amount of sense.”

She said the company doesn’t offer adequate long-term incentives to executives and it isn’t transparent, adding she’s mystified by 80-year-old JR Shaw’s accrued pension obligation of $75 million, which grew by $5 million in fiscal 2014. (The majority of the company’s voting shares are held by the Shaw family and controlled by JR Shaw.)