Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

Technically, Canada's darkest hour falls just before Christmas, when the calendar reaches the winter solstice. As a nation, however, our most depressing day may well be when the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives releases its annual list of the country's highest-paid CEOs.

In fairness, these CEO rankings are fickle — only two chief execs that appeared on last year's list make it back into the top 10 this year — but don't shed a tear for those that fell off: in 2010, the latest year data is available, Canada's 100 highest-paid CEOs took home compensation totalling $838 million. That's more than $8 million, on average! Who tops the nation's list this year? Click through to find Canada's highest-paid chief executives.

* Total compensation data, from 2010, accounts for base salary, bonuses, share grants, stock options, pension payouts and other compensation. Considered CEOs were the chiefs of companies listed on the TSX Index.

* Bing: What is the average Canadian salary?