Hamilton Council boss gets pay rise
Hamilton City Council chief executive, Barry Harris, has been given a 2.9 percent salary increase.
This takes his salary from $367,000 to $377,648 as from April 5.
The salary increase was agreed at a public excluded meeting of council yesterday and confirmed late today after discussions between Mayor Julie Hardaker and Mr Harris.
Mayor Hardaker confirmed the chief executive’s employment agreement required automatic payment of any market movement identified by a recognised remuneration consultant.
Strategic Pay Limited, commissioned to provide this advice at a cost of $1286, reported the market movement was 2.9 percent, but recommended a new salary of $385,000 for Mr Harris.
However, councillors chose to apply the 2.9 percent market movement as specified in the CEO agreement.
Strategic Pay’s report said the range for chief executives in similar positions for a competent performance ranged from $373,500 to $396,600.
The specialist pay company draws its advice from a database of executive and general staff from 475 organisations across the public and private sectors, including 74 of 78 councils.
Mayor Hardaker said the decision to award the 2.9 percent increase was made by a majority decision of 9 votes to 4.
The initial motion to pay the full market movement of 2.9 percent was moved by deputy Mayor Gordon Chesterman and seconded by Mayor Hardaker.
This drew an amendment from Cr Ewan Wilson, seconded by Cr Roger Hennebry.
That amendment called for the Mayor to negotiate a salary increase directly with the chief executive, but acknowledging that the market movement was 2.9 percent.
The amendment then indicated that if there were no agreement with the CEO, then the 2.9 percent would apply.
This amendment failed by 7 votes to 6.
Voting for the amendment were Crs Margaret Forsyth, Martin Gallagher, Hennebry, Dave Macpherson, Marijke Westphal and Wilson.
Against the amendment were Mayor Hardaker, Crs Bell, Bos, Chesterman, John Gower, Pippa Mahood and Angela O’Leary.
When the amendment was declared lost, the motion was then put to the meeting.
Voting for the 2.9 percent increase was Hardaker, Chesterman, Bell, Bos, Forsyth, Gower, Mahood, O’Leary and Westphal, with Gallagher, Hennebry, Macpherson and Wilson voting against.
The motion also directed the Mayor to advise the chief executive that council would like to re-negotiate a clause of his employment agreement linking increases to market movement.
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