• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
Rank and File

Rank and File

trade unionism from below

  • News
  • Support
  • Subscribe
    • About
    • Contribute
    • Contact Us
Close
  • About
  • Contribute
  • Contact Us

Nominate your 2020 Scumbag of the Year

12/22/2020 67 Comments

It’s been a hell of a year, so let’s get together with family, friends and co-workers and share our stories about the boss.

We continue Rankandfile.ca’s annual tradition of nominating and voting for Scumbag of the Year.

The Awards

  1. Private sector Scumbag of the Year
  2. Public sector Scumbag of the Year

The Rules

  1. In the comment section below, nominate the year’s worst bosses, scumbag politicians, and right-wing hacks. Canada only!
  2. Tell us why they deserve to be Scumbag of the Year. Last day for nominations is Boxing Day December 26.
  3. Nominees will be published and voting begins December 26. Rankandfile.ca can then vote for their nominees. Winners will be announced New Year’s Day.
  4. Past winners cannot win more than once! They’re already scumbags for life!

Past Winners

2019
Scott Banda, CEO of Federal Co-operatives Limited
Jason Kenney, Premier of Alberta
2018
Ron Joyce Jr. and Jeri-Lynn Horton-Royce, Heirs of the Tim Hortons fortune and TH franchise owners
Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario
2017
Galen Weston Jr., President and CEO of Loblaw
2016
Mark Lever, President and CEO of the Halifax Herald Ltd
2015
Deepak Chopra, Canada Post CEO
2014
Stephen McNeil, Premier of Nova Scotia
2013
Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada

ShareShare on Facebook
Facebook
Tweet about this on Twitter
Twitter
Email this to someone
email

By RF

Categories // Scumbag of the Year

Tags // Scumbag of the Year

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Fake name says

    12/22/2020 at 9:31 am

    Public: Paul Merriman. Slimy and spineless. In charge of policy over the most vulnerable people.

    Private: Roger Epp, slumlord.

    Reply
    • Andre Gallant says

      12/26/2020 at 11:01 pm

      Trudeau! Trudeau! Trudeau! 100% for new higher taxes during a pandemic!

      Reply
  2. jessica says

    12/22/2020 at 9:47 am

    I’m gonna have to nominate the whole Safeworks management team at AHS for sucking so bad at managing peer support workers at the safe consumption site in Calgary. And allowing nurses, admin, security and the police to treat people who use drugs like shit and contributing to many people’s lonely overdose in an alley due to no oversight and never being there to actually see what the hell is happening.

    Reply
  3. Orson says

    12/22/2020 at 9:48 am

    Chris Sky

    Reply
  4. Ari Vangeest says

    12/22/2020 at 10:03 am

    David Albert managing director of foodora Canada. If there is a higher up person in foodora Canada they should get this award. They deserve it for union busting during a pandemic.

    Stephen lecce. Deserves it for the way he treated education workers during the strikes early in the year and for the way he’s ruined education over the last few months during the pandemic.

    Reply
  5. Michael Truscello says

    12/22/2020 at 10:24 am

    Private sector: the bankers, for taking $16 billion in bonuses while thousands of workers lost their jobs during a pandemic

    Public: Jason Kenney

    Reply
    • Laurent Dubois says

      12/23/2020 at 12:45 pm

      I concur. Kenney is evil and will invoke lasting damage to Alberta.

      Reply
  6. Athabasca Staff says

    12/22/2020 at 10:33 am

    Public-sector: Neil Fassina, President of Athabasca University. After pushing faculty to the brink of a strike in 2019, Fassina spent 2020 advancing a policy designed to carve out two-thirds of the members of the faculty association. Worker push-back and the threat of a nationwide boycott appears to have stale-mated this union busting. Subsequently, Fassina announced he would be leaving for Okanagan College in 2021.

    Reply
  7. Jesse Cullen says

    12/22/2020 at 10:52 am

    Thomas Wellner, CEO or Reverse

    Reply
  8. Richard Gere says

    12/22/2020 at 11:13 am

    Jesse Michael Cullen- Alt Right who pretends to be left leaning

    Reply
  9. Jon says

    12/22/2020 at 12:06 pm

    Private sector: Hans Brouillette, representative of CORPIQ, the Quebec Landlords Corporation
    Public sector: Tyler Shandro, Alberta Health Minister, responsible for 11,000 layoffs during a pandemic

    Reply
  10. K Dobie says

    12/22/2020 at 12:14 pm

    PS scumbag of the year: Jason Kenney, Premier of Alberta

    I hope the people of this province never forget his prioritization of corporate bottom lines and the ‘rights’ of those who willfully endanger their fellow citizens over the actual lives of the province’s most vulnerable. There’s never been a more deserving second consecutive winner.

    Reply
    • Laurent Dubois says

      12/23/2020 at 1:20 pm

      Kenney is every bit as evil and self-serving as Trump.

      Reply
  11. H Zebedee says

    12/22/2020 at 12:26 pm

    Private: Galen Weston
    Public: Derek Sloan

    Reply
  12. Dirtbag Leftist says

    12/22/2020 at 12:28 pm

    Jason Kenney is a shoe-in for Public Sector Scumbag of the Year again. I won’t even deign to say why because it is so mind-numbingly obvious.

    Reply
    • Laurent Dubois says

      12/23/2020 at 1:20 pm

      You are 100% correct.

      Reply
  13. Rose says

    12/22/2020 at 12:50 pm

    Yes! My favorite time of the holiday season.

    This year I vote for
    1) Mary Barra, CEO of General motors, and
    2) Jeff Bezos, Amazon

    Reply
  14. Ryan Culpepper says

    12/22/2020 at 12:59 pm

    Public Sector – Stephen Lecce, Ontario Minister of Education
    Private Sector – Thomas Wellner, CEO of Revera

    Reply
    • Heather says

      12/25/2020 at 1:02 pm

      Absolutely Stephen Lecce. He’s unprepared & incompetent. He cares more about posing for photos than making schools safe. (Public) the owners/boards of long term care homes (private) who’ve put profits ahead of care

      Reply
  15. Nicholas Never says

    12/22/2020 at 3:16 pm

    Jason Kenney.
    I mean, privatizing healthcare, racist scapegoating, a failed tracking app, privatizing higher ed, not wearing masks, no policy on COVID, loosening workplace safety rules…. the list continues, but you get the idea.

    Reply
    • Laurent Dubois says

      12/23/2020 at 1:21 pm

      Alberta’s Satan for sure.

      Reply
  16. Clinton Hallahan says

    12/22/2020 at 4:10 pm

    Jason Luan, deputy minister of mental health and addictions, Alberta Government.

    Killed ARCHES in Lethbridge, one of the busiest safe injection sites on the planet. Killed people so Jason Kenney’s family interests in abstainence rehab centres could grow fat on public money. Spearheaded a fake-ass audit of their books, closed their doors, tried to get their execs charged for embezzling public funds. Documents surfaced this month that accounted for everything. No charges will be sought.

    He took lifejackets away from drowning people. In a government filled with motherfuckers, he’s one of the motherfuckest.

    Reply
  17. Tyler says

    12/22/2020 at 5:10 pm

    Jason Kenney. Tyler Sandro. Jason Luan. Self explanatory. In different ways these fucks have devastated the public good and made life for poor and vulnerable people increasingly miserable

    Reply
  18. No more scumbags says

    12/22/2020 at 6:13 pm

    Public sector: Tyler Shandro, both because he’s earned it and also because he’s a petulant child who would lose his shit if a bunch of health care staff started sharing your article calling him a scumbag.

    Private sector:
    Close race between meat packers and private long-term care operators but the LTC operators aren’t just dangerously negligent for workers, they’re deadly for the people they’re supposed to take care of. They literally had one job this year – keep them alive, and they failed terribly.
    Every private LTC CEO are this years private sector scumbag. Hands down.

    Reply
  19. Nic H says

    12/22/2020 at 9:51 pm

    Public: Health Minister of Alberta Tyler Shandro. Obviously.

    Reply
  20. Shamus says

    12/22/2020 at 10:10 pm

    Sometimes it feels like Manitoba is our most overlooked province. This year let’s fix that by giving the public sector scumbag award to Brian Paulista, who started the pandemic year by taking an extended vacation at his private villa in Costa Rica, letting Manitobans suffer the highest per capita infection rate in the country. And he ended it by opposing prioritizing vaccinating indigenous populations. Total rich white guy scumbaggery.

    And even though he’s an irrelevant asshole, I think Chip Wilson deserves private sector scumbag for this op-ed: https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/chip-wilson-opinion-mec-ndp. Consider it like one of those lifetime achievement awards for people who never won while they were relevant but have dedicated themselves to their craft (in this case, scumbaggery) for their whole career.

    Reply
    • Shamus says

      12/22/2020 at 10:11 pm

      Ugh, Apologies for the weird autocorrect. That should be Brian Pallister

      Reply
  21. Stuart Ryan says

    12/22/2020 at 11:08 pm

    1. Revera
    2. Merilee Fullerton

    The reason for both are the same. Revera is a for-profit long-term care company who makes profit rather than provide the health care needs of its residents
    2. She is the Minister of Long-term Care.
    In her previous job she openly called for privatization of our Medicare system.
    As Minister she has refused to make the changes to make long-term care public.
    The Ontario Health Coalion released a reportcalled A Call to Conscience demanding the Ontario government make the investment necessary to protect the residents in long-term care. Too many residences have died from COVID-19

    Reply
  22. Jonathan says

    12/22/2020 at 11:23 pm

    Private Sector has to go to Revera.

    Public Sector has to go to Jason Kenney for finding brand new levels of scumbaggery in a pandemic.

    Reply
  23. Don Sucha says

    12/22/2020 at 11:49 pm

    My nomination for scumbag politician is Tyler Shandro

    Reply
  24. Jenni says

    12/23/2020 at 12:05 am

    Tyler Shandro, Alberta Health Minister, Fighting with doctors during a pandemic. Among other things 🙄

    Reply
  25. Frankpelsoczi says

    12/23/2020 at 12:30 am

    Justin Nazi Trudeau

    Reply
  26. Garrett W. says

    12/23/2020 at 12:49 am

    1) Cenovus & Husky Energy for their mega-merger, putting another couple thousand Calgarians out of a job and possibly making the downtown vacancy rate go up several percentage points at the very least.

    2) Erin O’Toole for such a tone-deaf, contrarian, partisan, nonsensical PR campaign that mostly contains all bark and no bite. His most recent comments in the Ryerson Conservative FB Club, wherein he was admittedly trying to piss off the “woke” crowd, about residential schools was probably the biggest blunder to come out of his mouth so far this year and that’s saying something. His face-saving attempt did him no favours, IMO. Keep in mind that Egerton Ryerson himself was one of the brain-trusts behind the creation of the residential school system, and people are calling for Ryerson’s name to be remembered in disgrace rather than honour.

    Reply
  27. Scott says

    12/23/2020 at 2:10 am

    For public, whoever Alberta’s Deputy Minister of Executive Council is for forcing Government of Alberta office workers to return to the office to work during the global pandemic, from mid-August to mid-December 2020. People needed an explicit medical reason to work from home, so although it was available, it wasn’t the default option. Worse, your executive director could deny your request to work from home.

    Reply
  28. James Thompson says

    12/23/2020 at 5:44 am

    Public: I nominate the prime minister Justin Trudeau
    He has committed multiple ethic violations ,he’s embarrassed Canadians on the international stage multiple times.
    He says he’ll do something and never does what he says.
    Wore blackface more then he can remember.
    Pays 10 million to a convicted terrorist and says veterans are asking for too much.
    Well I can go one but we all know he’s Canada’s top scum bag!

    Reply
  29. Jason says

    12/23/2020 at 7:01 am

    Jason Kenny an all around goof. Sucks off big business and puts it to the worker.

    Reply
  30. Mary Brown says

    12/23/2020 at 7:04 am

    1. Private Sector =
    Canada Goose corporation for the torture and cruelty they inflict on Canadian Geese for some twisted sense of fashion – when man made
    alternatives are readily available. (As well as hunters, fur mills and fur sales for senseless destruction of helpless animals – Total scumbags!

    2. Public Sector
    Doug Ford, Ontario Premier – he has cut numerous benefits and classes for autistic children to the bone with no regard to child or families.
    Now with the pandemic he comes out all sweet and roses, making promises to residents that he never kept and delaying lock down until our
    largest Canadian family celebration, Christmas and New Year. Costing hundreds of lives in favour of the all might dollar. He is a disgrace to
    humanity. He has got to go!

    Reply
  31. NSFW says

    12/23/2020 at 9:10 am

    SHANDRO- treating Frontline Healthcare workers like second rate people durting a pandemic, and terminating employment while expecting more oit of them, horrible.

    AHS- COVID TRACERS- dropping the ball on tracing contacts, which now likely prevents a workplace death, from covid, nkt allowing the family to have death benefits. So perhaps that’s just the GOA in general.

    Reply
  32. Troy says

    12/23/2020 at 9:11 am

    Justin Trudeau

    Bill blair

    Reply
  33. Tim says

    12/23/2020 at 12:18 pm

    Justin Trudeau

    Worst Prime Minister in Canadian history…moral ethics, theft and treason to mention a few.

    Reply
  34. Me says

    12/23/2020 at 12:54 pm

    Private:
    1. Elon Musk the Bolivian coup supporting jerk will probably tweet about it if he wins.
    or
    Jeff Bezos billionaire villain for anti-union activities and evilness

    Public:
    2. Chrystia Freeland coup supporting Nazi forgiving apartheid supporter.

    Reply
  35. Billy says

    12/23/2020 at 3:24 pm

    Jason Kenney & Tyler Shandro
    For taking away mental health coverage for paramedics, police officers, and firefighters. For laying off thousands of nurses and severely wounding the relationship between doctors and the province in the middle of a Global Pandemic. Actually, the entire UCP government in Alberta because they are pushing through dangerous and unwanted legislation in a time when people are unable to protest.

    Reply
  36. Angry cat says

    12/23/2020 at 9:07 pm

    Public sector: Tyler Shandro, Alberta Health Minister, responsible for 11,000 layoffs during a pandemic

    Reply
  37. Slamdunk says

    12/23/2020 at 11:39 pm

    Definitely Jason Kenney. He brings out the worst in everyone, all the time

    Reply
  38. Derek says

    12/24/2020 at 7:32 am

    Stephen Lecce
    Adam Skelly

    Reply
  39. Nan Camp says

    12/24/2020 at 11:48 am

    Jason Kenney – Corrupt Supreme Ruler of Alberta and his entire UCP Party
    Selling off and selling out the province – actions NOT in the best interest of the average Albertan

    Reply
  40. Aneel says

    12/24/2020 at 12:41 pm

    Jason Kenney

    Reply
  41. KJ says

    12/24/2020 at 9:44 pm

    Well, since Doug Ford has already won this category (go figure) I nominate Stephen Lecce for public figure. Ontario’s worst MOE ever (constant lying, constant spin, does not care at all about his portfolio).

    Reply
  42. Felipe Pareja says

    12/24/2020 at 9:58 pm

    Private Sector: David Albert, Managing Director of Foodora Canada

    Public Sector: Stephen Lecce, Ontario Minister of Education

    Reply
  43. Angry Parents says

    12/24/2020 at 10:15 pm

    Private Sector: Adam Skelly, Owner of Adamson BBQ.

    For defying the law and opening his Adamson BBQ locations with a business license while also not following public health rules.

    Public Sector: Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education
    For putting children’s safety at risk by posting their photos online without parental permission, and especially by exposing countless students and school personnel to COVID-19 by not keeping schools safe.

    Reply
  44. Angry Parents says

    12/24/2020 at 10:30 pm

    Private Sector: Alan D. Torrie 
    Extendicare CEO. Responsible for Tendercare Nursing Home deaths and COVID-19 infections.

    Public Sector: Stephen Lecce, Minister if Education.
    For paying 1 mil to an American company to create a COVID-19 friendly back to school plan. And because he’s the Minister of Selfies and wears his pants too tight.

    Reply
  45. Wendy Goodes says

    12/24/2020 at 11:19 pm

    Public Sector: Stephen Lecce
    Private Sector: Adam Skelly

    Reply
  46. cm says

    12/25/2020 at 9:48 am

    Private Sector: Mike Harris & all complicit, profiteering CEO scumbags of Revera; may the ghosts of those who suffered and perished haunt their dreams nightly. No Hell is hot enough.

    Public Sector: Tie between Doug Ford & Stephen Lecce. Both are false leaders — narcissists, liars, bullies, hypocrites. They gutted public education, then callously endangered children by hoarding billions of Covid relief funds intended to make classrooms safer. “Men” who neglect KIDS.
    😈😈

    Reply
  47. SC says

    12/25/2020 at 10:21 am

    Private: Adam Skelly
    Public: Stephen Lecce

    Reply
  48. DJ carroll says

    12/25/2020 at 1:30 pm

    I nominate Stephen Lecce on minister of education- he has failed to keep students and staff safe . Plus he cares more about selfies than actually doing work.

    Reply
  49. Rob Armstrong says

    12/26/2020 at 9:09 am

    Galen Weston jr, for cheating us out of our daily bread. The ultimate schrooge.
    Doug Ford, Stupid is as Stupid does !

    Reply
  50. Kevin Skerrett says

    12/26/2020 at 4:17 pm

    My nomination is a joint one, shared between Revera CEO Thomas Wellner, and Jason Chester, Revera VP of Long Term Care Operations, Western Canada. Revera’s overall handling of the pandemic has been widely criticized, and CEO Wellner’s primary response was to work, with other for-profit LTC companies, to pressure the Ford government to provide a legal “immunity” from court action for the negligence causing death widely alleged. Ford, and his health ministers Elliott and Fullerton, were happy to oblige and together they moved Bill 218 through the Ontario legislature in mid November. VP Chester was directly involved in the Maples care home fiasco of November 6-9, when after a night of crisis, frantic calls to paramedics, residents found dehydrated and needing urgent care, and 2 deaths, Chester made claims to a press conference that the home had been at “full complement”. Within 48 hours that claim had been shown by frontline workers, members of CUPE and MNU, to be “false”. Wellner, Chester, and the top layer of Revera’s corporate management should have faced charges of neglect, and the front-line staff dealing with their horrible mess (and then setting the factual record straight) deserve medals of honour.

    Reply
  51. Cynthia Macintosh says

    12/27/2020 at 8:36 am

    Carmel Smyth, President of Canadian Media Guild

    Public Sector
    -racist, classist, sexist, ableist
    – pretends to be leftist but really alt right. Thinks the patriarchy should be upheld, punishes employees for filing complaints against management

    Reply
  52. Denis M says

    12/27/2020 at 8:41 am

    Wesley Leosky
    President, Air Canada Component of CUPE *public sector*

    Scams union members, sent out union bulletin calling Covid 19 “Chinese flu”.

    Reply
  53. Guillaume L says

    12/27/2020 at 8:44 am

    Alex Habib
    Secretary- Treasurer, Air Canada Component of CUPE. *Public

    -weasel

    Reply
  54. Garrett Schultens says

    12/27/2020 at 4:33 pm

    Public sector: Jason Kenney. He deserves to win this multi-year
    Private Sector: Mike Harris (former Premier of Ontario). He got his payoff from the long-term “care” industry and is not CEO of Chartwell, one of the private sector LTC corporations in Ontario. The private-sector LTC facilities in Ontario have an abysmal record and, thanks to Harris and his buddy Doug Ford, have no accountability.

    Reply
  55. UnionMaid says

    12/27/2020 at 11:55 pm

    I nominate: ICBC hated by all BC’ers
    CEO of Translink Amerikan Wanker! GTFO back to Trumpville!

    Reply
  56. Aaron Keeler says

    12/28/2020 at 10:31 am

    Private: Revera CEO Thomas Wellner
    Public: Ontario Minister of Education Stephen Lecce

    Both have done everything in their power to put private profit first and human life last during the global pandemic.

    Reply
  57. Matt Nicolaidis says

    12/28/2020 at 5:02 pm

    Public – Jason Kenney

    Private – The unfathomably corrupt board that sold MEC – a co-op – to a private company with no return to the co-op members.

    Reply
  58. George says

    12/29/2020 at 6:13 am

    If Jason Kenney doesn’t win this, there’s no justice.

    Reply
  59. Braydon Rogers says

    12/29/2020 at 9:54 am

    Jeff Bezos for not using a wee fraction of his wealth to ACTUALLY HELP PEOPLE IN THIS PANDEMIC! Absolutely ridiculous behaviour of a man who has so much he could be doing for the proletariat he exploits daily for his obscene and disgusting amount of capital wealth and therefore value ☭#eliminatethehoardimgofwealth

    Reply
  60. Damien says

    12/29/2020 at 12:59 pm

    Doug Ford and his f-ing cheese cake while hoarding 12 billion in federal help during a pandmic

    Reply

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Support rankandfile.ca

RankandFile.ca is committed to building a network of rank-and-file labour activists across the country. We believe sharing stories, experiences, debate, and analysis around our collective struggles strengthens our movement and builds solidarity.

Donate now

Join our
mailing list

  • Find us onTwitter
  • Find us onFacebook
  • Find us onInstagram

Rand and File logo
Copyright © Rank and File, 2021. All rights reserved.