25% Pay Hike
Christmas will come early for Ontario MPPs
By Judi McLeod
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Christmas will come early in Ontario this year. Not to the homeless or the poor house but at Queen’s Park. Santa will be giving provincial MPPs a tidy 25 percent pay hike.
To avoid public outrage in an election year, the pay package is being was under government manufactured news headlines such as “Changes in Keeping With Integrity Commissioner’s Call For Fair Compensation in the Public Interest”.
John and Josephine Q. Public are reminded, “Legislation would see members of Provincial Parliament paid 75 percent of their federal counterparts’ salary.”
In other words, it’s a provincial argument whose theme is keeping up with the Jones’, with some provincial members like David Ramsey saying that federal members of Parliament making more, “sticks in my craw.”
“Our province is only as strong as our democracy, and the strength of our democracy, and the strength of our democracy depends on the quality of the individuals who choose public service,” said Marie Bountrogianni, Minister Responsible for Democratic Renewal.
In his report, Ontario’ Integrity Commissioner, Coulter Osborne cited that a provincial member’s salary is $88,771 while a federal member is paid $147,700—a 40 percent gap. He called for provincial members’ salaries to be linked to federal members’ salaries.
Osborne concluded that it is “in the public interest” to increase provincial members’ compensation levels so that they:
Are fair;
Reflect the important responsibilities of provincial members;
Not fall so far behind federal compensation as to risk having the provincial legislature become a “farm team” for the federal House of Commons.
If passed, the legislation introduced yesterday would also increase the contribution to a provincial member’s registered pension plan from 5 to 10 percent of salary.
It is also about 75 percent less than what taxpayers pay towards an average federal member’s pension.
“I know members on all sides of the provincial Legislature are here, not because of the compensation they receive, but because of the contribution they can make to our province,” said Premier Dalton McGuinty. “But we must also ensure that the level of compensation does not become, as the Integrity Commissioner has warned, a deterrent to public service.”
A provincial member’s current salary would be increased from $88,771 to $110,775.
A provincial parliamentary assistant to a minister is currently paid a salary of $101,465 and would now take home a salary of $126,616.
A provincial minister’s current salary is $126,321 and would see an increase to $157,633.
The legislation, if passed, would also increase severance to six months for up to four years of service, 12 months for up to eight years and 18 months for more than eight years.
“This legislation is fair, it is in the public interest, and I urge all members to support it,” Bountrogianni said.
New Democrat members, yesterday called the pay raise for politicians “repugnant”.
“There is no way that a pay raise for politicians can be justified,” said New Democratic Party (NDP) leader Howard Hampton.
In recent years, all levels of government have ushered in members’ pay hikes through integrity commissioners or independent committees in order to spare themselves the wrath of the taxpayers who pay their salaries.
Inherent in most pay raise debates is that members, who showcase the most vehement of objections, know that the vote is in for passing the pay hikes.
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