Mayor says council pay raise a bad idea

Mayor Stephen Mandel wants council to pass up the 4.6-per-cent pay raise scheduled for this year because of the continuing financial downturn.

“We shouldn’t keep any raise for 2011,” he said Friday. “There’s no way, given the budget, the snow issue, the challenges citizens face … economic times are not easy for people.”

He isn’t in favour of his colleagues accepting the extra cash and donating it to charity, saying it’s still taxpayers’ money.

The raise is based on the previous year’s increase in Alberta’s average weekly wage, a system that has been in place for a decade.

An independent committee will look at council compensation in 2012, but the mayor isn’t a fan of the current formula.

“I don’t think the average annual wage is a good measure,” said Mandel, who said he hasn’t accepted a wage hike for about three years.

Several councillors have also indicated the proposed raise is too high, especially as the city negotiates new contracts with most of its unionized workers.

A report for next week’s council meeting indicates council members can decline raises or donate the money back to the city for a tax deduction, but suggests putting off changing the pay structure until after next election.

“Councillors made their decisions to run for office on the basis of the remuneration package which is currently in force,” it says.

Councillors now earn $79,787 annually and the mayor receives $144,061. Each month, councillors are given a $544 car allowance, while the mayor gets $1,089.

All these amounts are one-third tax free.

In addition, the city puts an amount equal to 11 per cent of a politician’s salary into a retirement savings plan and pays them up to 36 weeks salary as a transition allowance when they leave office.