At the March 17 meeting, District council agreed to move forward with a pay increase for the next term of council after a lengthy debate.
Muskoka councillors will see a pay increase of 48% over the next four years of council, from $28,330 in 2025 to $41,930 by 2030. The position of District chair will see an increase of 23.37% over four years, from $107,930 to $133,155. The position of deputy chair will see an increase of 42.40% by year four of the new term of council, from $36,362 to $51,782.
Councillor Don Smith tried to present an alternate option that would see increases more in line with inflation. He said looking at what District council gets paid per 100,000 residents compared to the municipalities used by staff to come up with a suggested median pay increase for District councillors, Muskoka, even if you include seasonal residents, is paid 65 per cent more than Niagara and three times more than the pay being proposed in Simcoe County.
“I personally don’t think I can justify that,” said Smith.
Councillor Scott Morrison said there is no one in Muskoka getting anywhere near a 48 per cent increase over a four-year period “and we are at a cost of living crisis right now. It’s not just a housing crisis,” he added.
Councillor Heidi Lorenz said the increase at committee was presented as a way to get competent people to run while also attracting younger people. She said the Employment Standards Act does not cover municipal politicians, and there is nothing to prevent councillors from being harassed and bullied. Councillors are not covered by Employment Insurance. Municipal councillors unlike MPs and MPPs do not get pensions.
“It is no wonder that municipal politicians are represented by 77 per cent male and 69 per cent are between 50 and 70 years of age. They’re likely the only ones who can afford to run in an election. Some of them are receiving pensions and most of them are self-employed and with 80 per cent incumbent rates, why would anyone put their family’s stability at risk for this job despite their love of the community,” questioned Lorenz. She said if council wants to see a diverse group of people, “we should be working on policies that support race, gender and financial equity. We should be talking about term limits and lobbying the province to protect people who serve their community including post-career support. I would rather see these funds [go] to support benefits and systemic change.”
Councillor Bob Stone asked whether council was underpaid for the scrutiny to their lives, and even the abuse they sometimes take. “The answer is yes, yet all of us fought hard for these positions that we’re holding right now, knowing full well that it’s not about the money. Is that altruistic? I hope so. I don’t want people running for office for the money and I haven’s seen a shortage of people running for office. I believe we are paid reasonably, not well, but reasonably and we should keep up with inflation but not this much.”
Stone asked for a recorded vote.
“I too did not come to this because of the money that we are paid. Having said that I do recognize that it is an important factor, that it helps,” said Councillor Nancy Alcock, adding that she agrees with Lorenz and suggested that perhaps a separate committee should be looking at whether the position is a full time job, whether it should be paid as a full time job and whether changes should be made.
Councillor Terry Glover said he agrees with the proposed pay raises. He said it is an increasingly difficult job and attracting new people to the position is not easy. He said he could not imagine how a single parent would be able to do it. “The only way I think that you could have another job is if it was a part time job and this was a part time job and then of course we know that that doesn’t work out in the end either, you’re still not making enough based on our under minimum wage salary that we pay here. We need residents who have new business ideas, who are diverse and even in the tech sector we need to restore hope and civic leadership by electing voices so that we can be fluent on issues and their perspectives like climate change, things like that,” he said. “We need to attract families to the area. We currently pay at a rate that creates a barrier to all these potential candidates. I don’t believe staff have recommended an outrageous amount. If you work it out and brake it down the way the newspaper has and others at 48 per cent over the period of time you could suggest that but we are paid under minimum wage now so in order to attract people to it you’ve got to make it so that they can afford to do the job. Even if they had a part time job and this job, it’s extremely difficult.”
Councillor Peter Kelly said he agrees with Councillor Glover. “We need to start recognizing that if somebody has young children at home or school obligations or another job, meeting at one o’clock on a Monday afternoon is probably suboptimal… We need to allow this place to thrive with a younger and more diverse group of councillors. I think the financial reward is a start but I think structurally and from a governance perspective we need to examine a whole lot of other issues…”
Councillor Brian Bochek said in Georgian Bay out of the seven councillors six were acclaimed. “Nobody wanted to run, absolutely nobody. I’ve been trying for the last year to find somebody to take my place. If I don’t run in the next election nobody is interested. So not only do we have a problem with recruiting people but getting them to stay, not just for one term but in the future. So I agree we need to be younger,” he said, also adding that attracting local people from the municipality is critical. “We have one councillor that comes from our township, the rest come from Toronto, come from Newmarket, come from Barrie, or wherever.”
Lorenz noted that councillors should put their money where their mouth is and start mentoring younger candidates. She said there is nothing to guarantee that more money will attract younger candidates.
Councillor Dan Armour said young people are running for council. “We are drawing people out of the woodwork who want to run in politics, it’s just the fear of getting there and you know you have to start at the municipal level before you get to the District level and you have to learn the ropes but I can’t support a 48 per cent pay increase when people in my community are not getting pay increases or they’re getting 50 cents an hour of a pay increase. They may work full time but they’re getting minimum wage, but my job is not full time…”
Others said rural communities are more dispersed, travelling takes more time, and some even have to use a boat to get to constituents, which costs money.
There were other suggestions about decreasing the number of councillors around the District table. In the end, a majority of councillors voted in favour of the recommended increases while Councillors Smith, Strength, Morrison, Stone, Alcock, Burry, alternate council member Christina Hunter, Armour and Lorenz voted against the increases.
“Look it’s always awkward that council must set its own compensation because even though it’s not until the next term, there’s lot of folks out there who watch and say ‘oh you’re setting your own salary,” said District Chair Jeff Lehman, noting that the later council leaves it, the closer to a perception of conflict it becomes. “This is legislated and it’s unfortunate because you can’t get around it,” he said, adding that even if the issue is delegated, council will ultimately have to ratify the decision. He also said based on issues raised by coucillors, such as how governance works or the number of councillors, there will be follow up.
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District council to consider pay increases for the next term of council
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I served 12 years on the Muskoka Lakes Council and 10 on the Muskoka District Council. I was the first ‘Madam’ Mayor of the municipality. I was a young mother at the time. My husband worked full time. I ran my own sole proprietorship as a successful graphic designer, calligrapher and creative artist. I certainly did not serve my community for the compensation as it was more an honorarium than ‘wages’. The only perqs I remember were an income tax break and mileage for scheduled meetings. No other ‘benefits. Certainly no ‘pension’ which would have been helpful if my years in politics had counted toward my CPP and OAS. Certainly, I would be better off today had I opted for a staff position rather than the political one. However, because I managed my own business, I also was able to manage my time. Other members of Council who were young business people, mostly men, did not have my freedom in that regard and found Council obligations interfered negatively with their personal business and didn’t run again. The issue of ‘compensation’ arose regularly in those years (’76 – ’88) but were never equably resolved. The arguments presented at District Council now are a reiteration of those presented so many years ago – but with a different outcome. I do hope for the good of Muskoka that this new result has the intended outcome of attracting younger, full time residents to elected office. Members that truly understand the financial and social needs of the community at large. I do not see this happening as the bureaucracy burgeons and the elected cadre is unable to counteract a well educated, well compensated staff. I am aware that Muskoka Lakes Township (and perhaps Georgian Bay and Lake of Bays) struggle to maintain to maintain an ethos and ambiance that defined Muskoka in the past.
So that means any savings for the garbage change to clear bags had a different reasoning…not to save the dump but to give a BIG PAY RAISE….
Times are getting tough and alot of people will loose their jobs but you give raises?????
So disappointing…..