BARRHEAD – Pembina Hills School Division trustees passed a motion at their Sept. 14 meeting to approve a 1.75 per cent increase in their trustee honourarium and stipend rates as of Sept. 1, 2022.
According to the minutes, which are posted to the Pembina Hills website, trustee Sherry Allen put forward the motion to introduce the 1.75 per cent increase at the end of the meeting.
In a follow-up e-mail, board chair Judy Lefebvre confirmed that their monthly stipend will now increase from $485 to $493.
As well, the honourariums they receive for attending half-day meetings will increase from $108 to $110, while the amount for full-day meetings is going up from $216 to $220.
Trustees had previously discussed the possibility of increasing the stipend and honouriums by three per cent at their Aug. 31 meeting.
This was also the same meeting where they enacted a small increase to the mileage rate paid to trustees, raising it from 50 cents per kilometre to 55 cents. Meal allowances were also increased by $5.
At the Aug. 31 meeting, some board members pointed out that there had been no increase to the stipend since 2016 despite the number of trustees being reduced to six, resulting in the remaining trustees having to cover more territory and cope with a higher workload.
However, others opposed an increase on the basis that each trustee was responsible for the same number of schools despite the reduction, and a three per cent increase was higher than the pay increases received by teachers and support staff.
When asked why the board settled on a 1.75 per cent increase, Lefebvre said they chose it because all Pembina Hills employees had received that amount.
“The train of thought was that the trustees have also been subjected to the effects of inflation and the rising cost of living,” Lefebvre said.
“In addition to that, comparisons were made with other boards, which are similar in size and budget to Pembina Hills.”
At the Aug. 31 meeting, the board reviewed trustee compensation at a total of 40 school divisions and found that Pembina Hills was in the top 20, though not among the highest.
Pembina Hills’ annual spending of $25,332 per trustee was higher than Aspen View Public Schools ($14,418 per trustee) and Northern Gateway ($18,825 per trustee). Note, Aspen View trustees recently adjusted their compensation schedule as well, so it may be considerably higher in next year’s financial reporting.
However, Pembina Hills’ compensation was only half what was paid to Rocky View Schools trustees, who receive $48,708 per year.
