CVRD should cut payroll costs
How absurd of the CVRD board considering a 12.19 per cent property tax increase. Time to lake a look at the payroll costs of the CVRD.
In 2017, total payroll costs for the CVRD was $17,343,181 and in 2021, total payroll costs was $19,284,575.
That is a increase of $1,941,394 or 11.2 per cent.
In 2017, $6,985,421 or 40.2 per cent was the total amount paid out to employees earning in excess of $75,000 per year.
In 2021, $9,848,054 or 51.1 per cent was the total amount paid out to employees earning in excess of $75,000 per year.
In 2017, the chief administrative officer was paid a yearly salary of $197,045 per year.
In 2021, the chief administrative officer was paid a yearly salary of $232,301 per year.
That is a increase of $35,256 or 17.9 per cent. This is total nonsense. Employees earning these kind of wages should have their yearly earnings frozen until they retire.
The premier of B.C. is paid a yearly salary of $218,586. This is $13,715 lower than the yearly salary of the CAO of the CVRD. Total nonsense of behalf the CVRD board spending taxpayer dollars foolishly.
The time will come, when the senior government in Victoria will have to be in charge of approving all B.C. municipal government wages.
In 2017, the CVRD paid out $286,696 to the B.C. Medical Services Plan. These amounts were added on to employee gross wages on their paycheques as a taxable benefit as per the law in Canada.
In 2019, the NDP government eliminated B.C. Medical Services Plan monthly charges and brought in the Employer Health Care tax which is 1.95 per cent of the yearly total payroll costs. This tax was created to offset the revenue lost from B.C. Medical charges.
In 2021, the amount paid out for this tax was $477,194. This is $190,608 or a increase of 66.5 per cent, more than the old B.C. medical charges.
The NDP government created a total cash grab. What should have been done was to leave the B.C. Medical Service charges as is and lowered the B.C. income tax rates.
In comparison, the City of Vancouver paid out $4 million in B.C. medical charges and now pay out $9.5 million in this new employer health care tax. This additional cost has to be added on to property taxes.
The CVRD board has just approved a new CUPE contract effective Jan. 1, 2022 to Dec. 31, 2025.
In the first year, the increase is 25 cents per hour plus a raise of 3.24 per cent retroactive to Jan. 1, 2022.
In the second year, the increase will be four per cent, in the third year, the increase will be 3.5 per cent, and in the fourth year, the increase will be three per cent.
The present rate of pay for a utility worker was $26.78 per hour and by 2025 the rate of pay will be $30.94 per hour.
This is a increase of $4.16 per hour or 15.5 per cent. This has to cease and in some years the increase must be zero.
There is a limit to every job classification, but the CVRD is just pyramid building these pay rates which the taxpayers have to keep paying from the increase on their property taxes.
Director Ian Morrison has stated that he is very disappointed that the issue of giving CVRD directors pay raises was not mentioned in the proposed 2023 budget. How shameful for him to think that way. Why? The job is only part time. Most CVRD directors already have a regular 40 hour per week job. With having full time jobs, the job of a CVRD director is part time. The present pay structure for CVRD directors is sufficient enough for the amount of work they do.
There is a total of 162 municipalities in B.C. All 162 municipalities are all out of control in their payroll costs.
Obtaining control on wage costs is only one item, if corrected can lower property taxes.
Municipalities do not try to cut down on expenses. Instead, cannot balance the budget, so to balance the budget, raise
property taxes. Total nonsense.
Unbelievable!
Joe Sawchuk
Duncan