Management Compensation Policy part of Public Record

From the City of Williams Lake:

As part of its commitment to open and transparent government, Williams Lake City Council at its meeting last night, brought forward an in-camera report on management compensation to the public record.

“As municipal leaders, we want always to be forthcoming and accountable to the public,” says Mayor Kerry Cook. “That is why the management compensation and benefits policy and the 2010 management base salary review and 2011 management compensation report has been brought out into the public record.

“Under the Community Charter, communities are only required to disclose management salaries of $75,000 or more in the Statement of Financial Information report, which comes out yearly in May or June. Council feels it is important to go above and beyond that requirement.”

The management compensation policy, adopted in December 2009 and revised in February 2011, provides direction from council with respect to management pay and benefits. The policy outlines benchmark salaries, a performance based compensation program, and policies for vacation, benefits, and termination.

In order for the City to compete with other municipalities to attract and retain qualified, talented management staff, the policy sets management base salaries at 105% of the average of similar-sized municipalities sampled in a five-year review, and are subject to an independent review every five years.

The 2011 preliminary budget calls for a 2% increase to management salaries effective April 1, with an annualized cost of $67,632 and a cost in 2011of $50,728.50. Some salaries have been raised by more than 2% in order to meet the benchmarks set out in the management compensation policy.

“It’s important to note that in November 2009, after six months of review, we restructured a number of positions, and that resulted in a total savings in 2010 of $345,310,” Mayor Cook says. “Salaries and wages are a large part of the City’s budget, and we want to ensure we deliver a high level of service in the most cost-effective way possible.”