Pay rise, no fuss

By Casey Neill
A KNOX councillor and mayoral pay rise was passed without fuss at a special meeting of council last Wednesday (17 June).
Councillors will have an extra $968 in their pocket when their annual allowance jumps from $25,410 to $26,787 later this year.
Mayors will receive $84,257 each year, up from $71,148.
But Mayor David Cooper has refused the extra cash.
Cr Cooper said accepting the pay rise would contradict his promise to control expenses and his current allowance was ‘sufficient’.
“You have to follow your conscience,” he said.
“I’m not saying the mayor doesn’t deserve a pay rise.
The office of mayor comes with great responsibility and a heavy workload.”
But Cr Cooper said the $13,000 boost was a ‘big jump’.
Chandler Ward councillor John Mortimore said councillors incurred expenses and costs over and above their allowance.
He said the money recognised their responsibilities, pressures, and time away from home and was necessary to attract good candidates.
“You can’t rule out people who have financial commitments,” he said.
The council received two public submissions after releasing the proposal for community consultation in April.
The first submitter supported the increase.
“I don’t want my elected representative being preoccupied with personal financial issues caused by their commitment to local government,” they said. “If this pay rise assists them to stay focussed on the role they were elected to it will be worth the cost.”
They also said Cr Cooper had a responsibility to the office of the mayor to accept the extra pay.
“To do otherwise is to lessen the value of the office of mayor and others following may not be in the financial position to make a similar decision, but will feel obligated to, based on the precedent set by Cr Cooper.”
The second submitter strongly urged the council to reconsider the “totally unjustified and unnecessary” rise.
“Council has voted to further stretch the already over-burdened financial commitments of the city’s ratepayers in what is no more than a poorly disguised attempt to gain a pay rise,” they said.
“Council may do well to remember that there are a number of ratepayers who have lost, or are about to lose their incomes,” the said.
“I have no doubt they would not see these rises in a positive light.”
A council report said the allowance was consistent with Municipal Association of Victoria and the Victorian Local Governance Association recommendations.
“The increase for councillors is in line with CPI when compared with previous years,” it said.
The report said the mayoral increase recognised ‘the increased responsibility in the role and the amount of time required to successfully undertake this role on behalf of the community’.
The council cannot force councillors and mayors to accept the allowance.