Council carried last week a motion to approve a minor cost of living adjustment increase for Town of Sundre staff.
Mayor Terry Leslie told the Round Up on Wednesday, Feb. 28 that the municipality had initially predicted a one per cent increase in the cost of living adjustment.
But the actual year-over-year adjustment was calculated to be closer to 1.3 per cent. So following a closed-door conversation — matters pertaining to issues regarding land, legal and labour may, as per the Municipal Government Act, be discussed in confidentiality — council resumed an open public session and approved the increase, he said.
Coun. Cheri Funke moved during the Feb. 26 meeting that council approve a cost of living adjustment of 1.32 per cent to be paid out of staff salary surplus and applied to the 2017 approved salary grid, effective Jan. 1. Her motion carried.
The mayor said that moving forward, the municipality will be basing future cost of living adjustments that compare the current year’s October with the past year because those figures are known before the year-end, thereby providing actual numbers while being more consistent and eliminating the need to predict or project.
