Wilmot council backs mayor and councillor pay increase for next term of council

By Galen Simmons

After several months of discussion around how the Township of Wilmot should review council pay for the 2026-2030 term, councillors have recommended applying a retroactive cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) based on the 60th-percentile recommendation from the township’s 2023 compensation review.

At its April 13 committee of the whole meeting, council recommended staff proceed with an adjustment to the base pay for the mayor and councillors for the next term of council following the October municipal election, with all members of council in favour except Coun. Lillianne Dunstall.

The recommendation follows an internal administrative review of council compensation conducted by staff, building on a 2023 market review completed by Pesce & Associates and guided by the township’s recently adopted council remuneration review policy.

“I just think comparing income without taking into consideration financial position doesn’t give a really clear picture,” Dunstall said, referring to the use of comparator municipalities to determine adequate council compensation. “I doubt that the (other municipalities) we used to compare had a 27 per-cent increase in taxes over the last two years. I think we have one more year of the nine per-cent (capital) levy. And the (municipalities) we used as comparators; some of them had twice the amount of (revenue) than we had. … We just don’t have the base to do that.

“In addition, I just don’t think our residents can take on more. Twenty-seven per cent in two years, that’s a lot, and now we’re asking them to take on more. I just don’t think I can vote yes on this.”

Under the recommended option, the mayor’s annual base salary would increase by $10,651.57 to $50,076.57 for the 2026-2030 term, while councillors’ base pay would increase by $3,343.25 to $25,215.25.

Staff reviewed four possible approaches to adjusting council pay, including maintaining current salaries with retroactive COLA applied, using the 50th percentile recommendation from the 2023 compensation review, using the 60th percentile recommendation plus COLA, or matching recently approved remuneration levels in neighbouring Woolwich Township.

Staff ultimately recommended the 60th percentile option as it aligns with how compensation adjustments were applied to township staff and reflects the municipality’s position relative to comparable jurisdictions.

“This is not an easy job and it sometimes can be a thankless job, but I think it is important, from my perspective, that we have to look at remuneration as it can potentially attract someone into this role,” Coun. Kris Wilkinson said. “Yes, I agree, civic duty and our love of it is probably what draws us here more than anything, but I think when we also look at the time we give up and the sacrifices we make from time to time, the remuneration is that trade-off and that give-back to say, ‘Thank you for being part of the township and the governance structure.’ ”

“It’s not going to affect this current council,” Coun. Harv Sidhu added. “It will be for the next council and there is a barrier in between that; it’s called the election. We’re going to have to earn the public’s trust again. All the cards are going to be on the table, I’m going to go door to door and I’m going to have to answer to this. I have had conversations with residents bringing up this very topic and I would say … nine out of 10 of them said, ‘You have a tough job, it’s not a large number.’ It’s not something we want, but if you want to have good candidates, it’s essentially something you’ve got to pay for.”

Current base salaries for Wilmot council have remained unchanged since 2023, when councillors chose not to move forward with recommended increases and also opted to forgo annual cost-of-living adjustments during the current term.

The remuneration review process stems from council’s adoption of a formal policy in 2025 establishing a standardized approach to reviewing council pay once per term, with any changes applying to the next term of council rather than the current one.

Previous discussions at council highlighted the importance of benchmarking compensation against comparable municipalities and ensuring remuneration reflects the responsibilities and time commitment associated with serving as mayor or councillor, while balancing fiscal responsibility and public perception.

“There is a growing body of research about engagement in municipal politics and it’s declining, and that less people are putting their names forward, and one of those big, underlying factors is affordability,” Mayor Natasha Salonen said, touching on why she used her strong mayor powers to direct staff to begin developing a council remuneration policy last fall. “We, in my opinion, as a community need to be incentivising enough through remuneration that we’re allowing people who can bring the types of decision making to the table that we want to see … aren’t being stopped because the remuneration isn’t something that they’re able to make work in their daily lives.

“ … I don’t want it to become an argument of civic duty or remuneration. … I think it’s really important that we are allowing people in our community to engage, if they want to, in a way where money isn’t a factor.”

Financial implications associated with the recommended option would see total annual base remuneration for council increase from $148,785 currently to $176,152.82 beginning with the 2026-2030 term.

Staff also recommend a further comparative review of council compensation be included as part of the township’s 2027 market compensation review to ensure ongoing alignment with comparable municipalities and evolving responsibilities of elected officials.

The committee of the whole recommendation will be considered for final approval at an upcoming council meeting, with any changes to remuneration taking effect following the Oct. 26 municipal election and the start of the new term of council.