Two years have passed since we first suggested the Sunshine List was much like an iceberg – interesting to note, but the real danger lurks beneath the surface. Dozens more civil servants have joined the ranks of those making in excess of $100,000 per annum in Wellington County.
Good pay attracts good people, but there is a point where affordability needs to be bench marked. As noted in the preceding editorial, other levels of government are now placed in the very uncomfortable position of dealing with the affordability factor.
Between pensions and annual staff obligations, there are some tough choices to make.
Recognizing that, it remains curious that little is said locally about wage and benefit containment in municipal government. There were some efforts to curtail a 3% wage increase earlier this budget season at the county, but those efforts were arguably political gestures, as opposed to a management-driven exercise to keep a lid on one of that government’s largest expenditures.
We remain convinced that in the longer term a sincere exercise is required to ensure that best value is delivered to ratepayers. Salary discussions ultimately have to be part of the equation for sustainability.
If there is a ray of sunshine, we are nowhere near the precipice where drastic action is required, but politicians and upper management owe it to their employees and voters to be vigilant about the costs associated with staff and the programming they deliver.
