Mayor defends sky-high salaries amidst 40% rate hike for residents

In a picturesque coastal town in Sydney, a storm is brewing that has nothing to do with the coastal weather. Residents are up in arms, protesting the eye-watering salaries of the staff at Northern Beaches Council (NBC).

The controversy erupted when it was revealed that the council’s chief executive, Scott Phillips, earns a whopping $544,000 annually. This revelation came at a particularly sensitive time, as the council had just voted in favour of a significant rate hike, which was met with widespread disapproval from the community.

The 40 per cent rate increase, branded as ‘disgusting’ and ‘disgraceful’ by those struggling to make ends meet, has sparked a heated debate about the council’s priorities and spending.

Meanwhile, defending the CEO’s salary, Mayor Sue Heins stated on Channel 10’s The Project that, ‘like all councils at that very senior position, that is a position that is not coming under any award. We all look and headhunt for people that we’re looking for. So our CEO’s rate is not unusual.’

However, this defence has done little to quell the outrage among residents.

Independent Councillor Vincent De Luca has been vocal in his opposition to the rate increase, pointing out that the council spends $25 million on 111 managers, directors, and executives alone.

The council’s 2023-24 annual report reportedly showed that four senior staff members, excluding the CEO, earned a combined $2,846,877. This level of remuneration has placed NBC at the top of the list for executive pay among metropolitan Sydney councils, according to The Daily Telegraph.

The council employs 1,800 staff at a total cost of $159 million, which accounts for 40 per cent of its annual budget.

This has led to questions from the public, such as those posed by Freelancer CEO Matt Barrie, about the necessity of such a large workforce, especially when services like garbage collection have been outsourced.

‘What on earth are they all doing?… Why couldn’t you run the council with 100 staff?’ he asked on social media.

Moreover, the rate hike has also sparked heated debates among councillors. During a tumultuous four-hour meeting, councillors clashed over the proposed increase, with some advocating for cuts and efficiencies instead.

The council was met with protesting residents. Image Source: Pixabay / KT Automation Pvt Ltd

The meeting was so contentious that it had to be stopped twice due to outbursts from the public gallery.

Despite the council’s consultation process showing that 51 per cent of respondents were against any rate increase, the council voted in favour of the highest option, which was only supported by 11 per cent of survey participants.

In defence, the council stated, ‘While many of the survey respondents indicated they did not want an SV, there was also support for levels of service to be improved, which is not possible without a rate increase.’

The council argues that the rate rise is necessary to ‘maintain financial sustainability and to continue to deliver services and assets as expected by our community.’ They also cited the pressures of rising costs, inflation, and the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and natural disasters as contributing factors to their financial position.

‘Like many councils in NSW, [Northern Beaches Council] is facing growing pressure to its financial sustainability as increases in income, under the NSW rate peg system, have not reflected the rising costs of materials, contracts, and construction, with Sydney’s inflation over the four years to 30 June 2024 being almost double the increase in rates income,’ argued the council.

Meanwhile, in response to criticism about staffing levels and salaries, the council has stated that a ‘reduction in some non-essential service and administration would not be of a scale to offset the required level of funding for council’s asset maintenance and renewal backlogs that are in the order of approximately $40 million per annum and increasing.’

As the application for the rate increase heads to the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART), ratepayers will have the opportunity to voice their concerns through a public consultation process.

The situation at NBC raises broader questions about the balance between fair remuneration for council staff and the financial burden on ratepayers.

Our YourLifeChoices readers, we invite you to share your thoughts and experiences with local council spending and rate increases. Have you faced similar issues in your area? How do you think councils can better manage their budgets without overburdening ratepayers? Join the conversation in the comments below.

Also read: Could council rate hikes drive low-income Aussies out of their homes?

Floralyn Teodoro
Floralyn Teodoro
Floralyn covers different topics such as health, lifestyle, and home improvement, among many others. She is also passionate about travel and mindful living.

5 COMMENTS

  1. This is happening in a lot of councils , Councils need to get back to doing the job they where to do which is road repairs, garbage collection, process planning permits in a timely manner, our council is now involved with political agendas, wok hobby horse programs do the basics right and keep the rates down.

  2. Yes I don’t understand how the State government allows them to get away with unnecessary projects that they can’t afford then except ratepayers to foot the bill. Just asking what qualifications do council members for running cites. Federal and State governments have government departments that advise them, who advises councils?

  3. The people need to remember this and vote them out at the next council election. These greedy little councillors have no respect for their electorates and the people living in them. If 40 per cent of the budget is for wages, then none of them have the basics for budgeting. Thin out the top level of council employees – as we know it’s always the bottom tier that gets cut, make sure projects are a realistic amount of money to complete and not over inflated as much of any level of government work seems to be.

  4. Councils need all those administrators and executives to make sure every silly bylaw is enforced to the maximum extent possible and citizens kept in line.
    And to some extent residents have themselves to blame for that situation because it is all their whining to Council about anything that annoys them which causes Councils to act that way.

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