Councillors salaries and 'golden goodbyes'
The press and media have been awash with comment this week about our elected local councillors receiving big pay increases this year, while others are to receive 'Golden Goodbyes' for agreeing not to stand in the next council elections due on May 3rd 2007.
A new scheme will pay existing councillors, who agree to step down, up to £20,000 (tax free) - the payment is intended as compensation for all the years that these councillors worked without proper salaries or access to pension benefits. The cost of the severance package in Glasgow alone has been estimated at £420,000
From May 3rd 2007 onwards all of the remaining or new local councillors will benefit substantially from the introduction of a new basic salary of £15,452 a year, rising to £46,357 a year for the leaders of the largest councils - in the fair cities of Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Now there are different views on how generous or otherwise these new arrangements really are. Some commentators say they don't go far enough, while others are horrified at the cost to the public purse. You pay your money and take your choice.
But one thing's for certain - you can bet your house that the our elected local councillors will be taking nothing less than every last penny that they are entitled to claim!
How different from the advice given to low paid women workers - who have been pressurised and bullied into accepting partial, one-off 'buy-outs' of their equal pay claims - instead of real pay parity with the men.
As the old saying goes: "What's sauce for the goose should be sauce for the gander".
So, don't let any councillor - past or present - tell you that you're not entitled to the proper rate for the job.
A new scheme will pay existing councillors, who agree to step down, up to £20,000 (tax free) - the payment is intended as compensation for all the years that these councillors worked without proper salaries or access to pension benefits. The cost of the severance package in Glasgow alone has been estimated at £420,000
From May 3rd 2007 onwards all of the remaining or new local councillors will benefit substantially from the introduction of a new basic salary of £15,452 a year, rising to £46,357 a year for the leaders of the largest councils - in the fair cities of Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Now there are different views on how generous or otherwise these new arrangements really are. Some commentators say they don't go far enough, while others are horrified at the cost to the public purse. You pay your money and take your choice.
But one thing's for certain - you can bet your house that the our elected local councillors will be taking nothing less than every last penny that they are entitled to claim!
How different from the advice given to low paid women workers - who have been pressurised and bullied into accepting partial, one-off 'buy-outs' of their equal pay claims - instead of real pay parity with the men.
As the old saying goes: "What's sauce for the goose should be sauce for the gander".
So, don't let any councillor - past or present - tell you that you're not entitled to the proper rate for the job.
