SWOX council approves pay raise for mayor and councillors

Debbie Kasman, Tillsonburg Post Correspondent

South West Oxford (SWOX) council has approved a pay raise for themselves, establishing the annual remuneration for the 2026-2030 term of council at its July 14 meeting.

Effective January 1, 2027, the mayor will receive $27,200 annually, while the councillors will receive $18,135 annually. For comparison, the current 2026 remuneration rates are $25,702 annually for the mayor and $17,135 annually for councillors.

The proposed remuneration represents an increase of approximately $1,500 annually for the mayor and $1,000 annually for each councillor compared to the current remuneration levels. Annual cost of living adjustments will continue to be applied throughout the term of council in accordance with the township's established practice and remuneration by-law.

Ward & Uptigrove Human Resources Solutions completed a report comparing SWOX council’s current remuneration to a group of comparable municipalities and concluded the township’s current honorariums are below the market median.

The report recommended that remuneration be aligned with the 50th percentile of comparator municipalities and that any changes be implemented with the commencement of the next term of council in November 2026.

The consultant's review identified a market median (50th percentile) annual honorarium of $30,264.82 for the mayor and $18,759.18 for councillors based on the comparator municipalities reviewed. This would have represented increases of approximately $4,562 annually for the mayor and $1,624 annually for each councillor with an estimated total annual financial impact of approximately $14,306.

During council's discussion on June 2, 2026, they considered potential adjustments to remuneration for the 2026 - 2030 term of office, and discussion generally reflected support for an increase of approximately $1,500 for the mayor and approximately $800 for each councillor.

At their July meeting, Councillors Craig Gillis and George Way supported the increase. Councillor Jim Pickard supported the increase as well, but pointed out people don’t usually run for the money, that councillors are there to serve the people.

Councillor Paul Buchner said that it’s always a hard decision to support a raise for yourself, but there is a lot of time and mileage involved and time away from your job.

Mayor David Mayberry agreed with Councillor Pickard’s comments saying, “If people are here for the money, they’re here for the wrong reason…I can support the resolution as presented.”

Neither Mayberry nor Pickard will benefit from the increase as they are not running in the upcoming election. Mayberry did vote for an increase as a County of Oxford councillor when the issue was raised on a recent agenda.