Fort McMurray councillors vote to double their pay

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tay

Hall of Fame Member
May 20, 2012
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City councillors in Fort McMurray, Alta., have approved a motion to more than double some of their salaries, and three could become some of the highest paid councillors in Canada.

The pay hike is drawing harsh criticism from constituents, many of whom lost their homes and jobs to the wildfires that devastated the region last month.

Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo councillors voted 7-4 in favour of the measure to boost their compensation. Those in favour say the move is justified because councillors expect to put in additional hours to co-ordinate rebuilding efforts.

“This is kind of outrageous right now,” said Chad Remillard. His family has been living at a local camp ground since fleeing their home in early May.

Seven part-time councillors currently earning $36,000 per year will see their pay rise to $75,000. Councillors Allan Vinni, Keith McGrath, and Sheldon Germain -- all part of a newly minted relief committee -- will now work full-time. Their pay will rise to $150,000 per year. That’s believed to be the highest base salary for any councillor in Canada.

The new salaries will be in effect until Dec. 31, 2017.

Fort McMurray councillors vote to double their pay | CTV News
 
FiveParadox

FiveParadox

Governor General
Dec 20, 2005
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The very last sentence probably should have been mentioned higher up in the article. Saying that they're doubling their pay in an unqualified way makes it sound as though they've given themselves permanent increases, whereas it sounds like there's an expectation that councillors are putting in way more time than is usually expected due to the coordination of the rebuilding efforts. It doesn't seem entirely unreasonable when you say "Councillors are being given temporary increases during a period of intense workload."
 
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