Caledon’s next Mayor and Council to get compensation increase

More staff to be hired for Town's Mayor and Council office to meet work demand

By Zachary Roman

Caledon's Mayor and Councillors for the 2022 to 2026 term will receive more compensation than their 2018 to 2022 counterparts.

At Town of Caledon Council's July 12 General Committee meeting, a Town staff report recommendation that the future Mayor's salary be increased to $116,830 (from $98,625) and that future Councillors' salary be increased to $49,841 (from $40,080) was passed.

These increases will cost the Town $123,178, according to the staff report.

In addition to the pay raise, the total expense budget for Councillors will be increased by $9,500.

All Caledon Councillors, except Annette Groves and Tony Rosa, voted yes on the motion to pass staff's recommendation. Groves noted she didn't think it was the right time for an increase and that the next term of Council should make a decision on any pay raises.

The staff report was submitted to council by Laura Hall, Caledon's director of corporate services and town clerk; Tracey McKenna, Caledon's director of people services; and Marianne Love of ML Consulting, a firm that was retained by the Town to investigate Council compensation ahead of Caledon's 2022 municipal elections.

The recommended salary increase for Mayor and Council is in line with the 60th percentile of the market, meaning that Caledon Council's salaries are now 10 per cent above the median salary of similar municipalities' Councils.

Before the increase, Caledon's Mayor salary was 18.5 per cent below the 60th percentile; and Caledon's Councillor salary was 24.4 per cent before the 60th percentile.

The last time salaries for Caledon's Mayor and Council were reviewed, other than for annual cost of living adjustments, was in 2015.

According to Town staff, the salary review they undertook was guided by the following principles: It must demonstrate fiscal responsibility and be fair to the taxpayers; compensation should attract a diverse, representative, and skilled pool of Caledon residents as candidates seeking election to Council; the work of the Mayor and Council is recognized as demanding as well as important and as such they should be appropriately and fairly compensated; and the significant complexity, responsibilities, time commitments and accountabilities associated with the role of Mayor and Council are recognized.

The salary review was prompted due to Caledon's recent ward boundary review, the decrease of Regional Caledon Councillors from four to two, and to have Caledon be in line with similar municipalities.

Also at the July 12 general committee meeting, Caledon Mayor Allan Thompson tabled a motion to hire more staff to meet work demand in the Town's Mayor and Council office. He said changes to the Regional Council composition, ward boundary changes and the expected growth and development in the Town will have a tremendous impact on staff workload for the future terms of Council. In his motion, he explained in the last four years staff in the office have experienced workload and capacity constraints. So, Thompson asked that three permanent full time Council coordinator positions be created effective September of this year, which would have a tax impact of $258,850 on the 2023 budget.

The motion was approved on consent.