Toronto city councillors are facing backlash for a proposed 24 per cent pay increase to their salaries, that’s set to be voted on this week.
The proposal comes from a staff report which recommends that council salaries be raised from $137,537.40 to $170,537.40.
The report, which was conducted by the People and Equity Division, says the hike falls in line with the 75th percentile of the comparator market group at $165,933.43.
It also points to other reasons such as “unique demands” placed on councillors, such as a large number of constituents per councillors, a large operating budget and capital budget larger than some provinces, and oversight of service delivery to the city.
While councillors’ salaries are increased yearly based on CPI and the rate of inflation, the last time council adopted a motion for a pay increase was in 2006.
The city council is set to vote on the recommendation during a council meeting on Wednesday, but Mayor Olivia Chow has already shared her stance on the matter during an unrelated press conference on Tuesday.
“It is too steep,” Chow said. “These are hard economic times for everyone… I do know that the councillors are facing a lot of pressure.”
Torontonians have also called out the recommendation in the report, with some social users encouraging staff and council to “read the room.”
“No other worker gets a 24 per cent pay hike. We are lucky to get 1 per cent … put that money to better use for the city, councilors already get paid enough,” one X user said.
“Call me crazy but city councils shouldn’t be able to vote on whether or not they get a pay raise that should be a vote by the community they serve at best,” another user added.
An X user went on to post that the hike is “a ridiculous amount,” and also added that “councillors should not be allowed to decide on their increases.”
According to the report, council salaries from nine other municipalities across Canada were assessed to help determine the decision, including: Brampton, Mississauga, Markham, Calgary, Edmonton, Hamilton, Vaughan, Ottawa, and Markham.
It found that Toronto has the lowest salary per constituent, at $1.08 compared to Markam which has the highest at $5.24. Overall, Mississauga councillors have the highest cash salary in the group with an annual salary of $173,000.
If city council approves the recommendation, it will cost the city approximately $956,000, and will be funded through the 2025 Corporate Non-Expenditure Budget, according to the report.
