New Council will see wage hike

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But Council was divided around the discussion. Councillors Cori Ramsay and Terri McConnachie both pointed to the need to attract people to run for politics, but came to a different conclusion.

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“I am not here for the money. I love this job,” noted Councillor Ramsay. “It’s tough to sit here as a young working person. I have taken 104 hours of unpaid days to attend Council meetings. It’s tough. It’s tough to make the sacrifices. We get a lot of criticism and not a lot of praise.”

And while Councillor McConnachie also wants more people to run for office, she looked at the population of Prince George compared to the peer communities.

“We are the smallest city on that list,” she noted. “Maybe that could be re-visited as the population grows.

But Councillor Brian Skakun was staunch in his opposition, noting that CUPE members received two percent wage hikes in each of the three years of its contract, beginning in 2021, while exempt staff took a zero percent hike in 2020 and two percent this year.

“We can’t go to CUPE and exempt staff and say ‘I think two percent is good for you, but three and a half is good for Council.’ It’s not the time.”

Councillor Garth Frizzell agreed.

“I think it’s time to buckle in and take a hit for another year.”

“These folks around the table aren’t paid what they’re worth,” noted Mayor Lyn Hall. “You don’t take the job for the pay. This is about pay equity. I don’t see my job as any different than that of the mayor of Kelowna or Kamloops.”

Ultimately, Council passed the recommendation, but it was not unanimous. Councillors Terri McConnachie, Garth Frizzell and Brian Skakun voted against.

The only other of the five recommendations that garnered any significant discussion was one around $40 per day for childminding expenses.

“This is very progressive. It’s compassionate and empathetic,” says Councillor Skakun. “It’s not just single moms. It’s single dads, even grandparents taking care of the grandkids.”

“It think it’s brilliant,” noted Councillor McConnachie.

The final recommendation looked at reimbursement of $250 per month for personal vehicle use.

“This works out to more than $3,000 per year,” noted Councillor Kyle Sampson. “That’s more than the wage increase we passed in the two years combined.”

That recommendation was defeated unanimously.