Leave it to government to make what’s essentially a cost-of-living wage increase into something more.
Okotoks council members gave themselves a salary bump last week, one that saw wages rise by about 13 per cent for the mayor and 11 per cent for councillors.
Reaction in the community wasn’t kind, as would be expected, and gravitated to a few common themes, including how it must be nice to be able to give yourself a raise. There were also concerns about the double-digit increases being well beyond what most others in the community have received this year and many linked the hikes to why property taxes continue to climb.
The reactions were both understandable and predictable, all brought on by a Town policy that stipulates a comprehensive review of salaries and benefits takes place every term of council. When you’re only going to look at compensation levels once every four years, they’re bound to get outdated and be in need of significant adjustment.
In this case, councillors haven’t had a raise since 2019, so their hike works out to about two per cent per year; the last time the mayor’s position saw a bump was back in 2020, so that’s about a three per cent annualized increase.
When the numbers are put in that context, they don’t seem anywhere near as egregious and at less than $40,000 combined, the raises are unlikely to put too much of a dent in tax bills when spread over 11,000 homes.
There’s no getting around the fact that council members have little choice but to set their own remuneration levels, however they can do themselves a favour by not waiting four years to do so. It would be in their best interests to amend a policy that provides double-digit raises on the eve of an election year.
