Gimli's mayor and council give themselves a pay bump

Gimli's mayor and council have voted in favour of giving themselves a pay bump over the next year.

During a council meeting Wednesday evening, the rural municipality's council gave second and third reading to a bylaw first introduced in February, which will see their wages increased.

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The rural municipality confirmed to CTV News the bylaw has passed with amendments, bringing phased salary increases in 2023 and 2024, along with a boost to daily meal per diems and indemnities.

The first phase of increases takes effect immediately.

Gimli Mayor Kevin Chudd previously told CTV News that wages and compensation have not increased in five years.

He was unavailable for an interview Thursday.

HOW DOES GIMLI'S SALARIES COMPARE TO OTHER MUNICIPALITIES?

Coun. Thora Palson, the chair of finance and administration in Gimli, told CTV News council made amendments opting for the phased increases rather than one big pay bump as a result of resident concerns.

As for how they came up with the new salaries, Palson said she compared Gimli to three surrounding municipalities (St. Andrews, St. Clements, and East St. Paul) with similar numbers of dwellings and municipal revenues.

CTV News has made a comparison of salaries with six surrounding municipalities.

Palson said she had guiding principles in mind while making the salary adjustments; it should be sufficient to attract individuals from all walks of life to stand for election to municipal public office, it should correspond with the responsibilities and time commitments of the elected officials, and should be reasonable and fiscally responsible.

When asked if residents will feel the pay bumps in the next budget, Palson said no.

"It will not have a major impact on the overall municipal budget," she said. "We've been consistent with the municipal budget increases of about two to 2.5 per cent. So I don't anticipate that being any different this year."

PAY BUMP COULD ENCOURAGE MORE PEOPLE TO RUN FOR OFFICE, POLITICAL SCIENTIST SAYS

In speaking with CTV News previously, Chudd said he hopes this boost may bring more people into civic politics in the future.

This comes after the most recent civic election, which saw nearly half of Manitoba's heads of council reclaim office by acclamation – meaning there were no opponents in the elections.

Among them is Melita's mayor, Bill Holden who has been acclaimed as mayor of the town in every election since 2014.

He said it is a job that takes a lot of time and doesn't pay much, but he said many of the people running are not in it for the money.

"You're in it for the betterment of your community, not so much about the salary," he said, adding many people running in civic elections are, like himself, retired.

Aaron Moore, an associate professor and chair of the University of Winnipeg's department of political science, said traditionally many of the people running in civic elections are older and already self-sufficient in terms of money.

But he said society has changed, and the paycheques may have to change with it.

"As we've looked to attract a more diverse group of people into politics, being able to actually provide people with enough money to make the transition into government and politics worthwhile, that has become important," he said.

"I think it matters more in the bigger cities where it's a full-time position. But I think even in smaller communities, it is one of the things that will encourage people to become involved."

All that said, Moore adds he understands the negative feedback from residents.

"It's often not popular when elected officials raise their own wages," he said.

The Association of Manitoba Municipalities said while it doesn't comment on decisions made by individual councils, it recognizes municipalities continue to endure greater responsibilities due to other orders of government downloading large costs onto municipalities.

"Local governments are facing growing demand from residents to deliver quality services that all Manitobans depend on," the association said in a statement to CTV News. "Since local Councils know their communities best, they are allowed to determine their compensation levels."

-With files from CTV News' Mason DePatie