Penhold town staff will be getting a salary increase of 3.2 per cent after council voted to apply the most recent Alberta Consumer Price Index (CPI) level to the salary grids.
"We did talk about that in camera session," Mayor Dennis Cooper said. At the beginning of the meeting on Jan. 23 the topic was moved from the public agenda to the in camera session.
Cooper said it was moved because it was dealing with people's salaries. According to him, council voted to implement three recommendations that were on the report, including altering policy manuals and employee handbooks so in future council will have to approve any CPI-based increases over three per cent.
The third recommendation was to apply the 3.2 per cent increase to staff salary.
In 2011 the raise to salaries based on the Alberta CPI was one per cent, and in 2010 the raise was 0.6 per cent.
"We put a limit on it now," Cooper said. The budget already incorporated the 3.2 per cent raise.
The 3.2 per cent raise technically applies to both staff salaries and council remuneration but Cooper said they've been keeping council rates the same.
"It was only applied to staff," he said. As for the council rate, "we talked about it that first year and we felt we shouldn't move it."
According to a policy included as part of the council package, councillors receive a $516 monthly honorarium and $75 per meeting or $200 for a full-day meeting. The mayor receives a $645 monthly honorarium and $95 per meeting or $240 for a full-day meeting.
