Council staff rents frozen for one

Waimarino Bulletin, 26 July 1988, Page 3

Council staff rents frozen for one

All council staff rents will be frozen until council engineer Don Sattler's terms of employment have been set. That is if a recommendation to the Waimarino District Council from its finance and administration committee is accepted.

Last week the committee decided to recommend to full council to adopt only some of the rents the district manager had calculated, leaving out subsidised staff rents. Debate arose out of Mr Murrihy's calculations which would see Mr Sattler's rent double, from $20 per week. Mr Murrihy had applied a formula to all staff rents which was based on two per cent of the capital value of the property and two per cent of the respective staff member's salary. Committee chairman Doug Bennett said the formula was reasonable but said: "the only query I have is Don Sattler's having doubled. He was provided with a house as part of his employment and until his terms of employment are renegotiated I think ... his should go to about $25," said Cr Bennett. "But he's got a new job now," said Cr Frew. "But he hasn't had an increase in salary to recognise the increase in responsibility," said Cr Bennett. "Mr Chairman I used a formula that is consistent throughout the whole council. To do what you suggest would be to penalise others that have been paying more anyway," said Mr Murrihy. "But his house rent goes with his job," said Cr Bennett. "And so do these others," said the district manager. Cr Frew asked how the doubling of M r Sattler's rent came about. "I would suggest there wasn't a formula used before. I've introduced a formula as I said I would and it works out for m o s t people reasonably well," said Mr Murrihy. "Certainly some increase, like $5, but the thing would b e resolved when his position is resolved," said Cr Bennett. "Mr Chairman if his salary goes up then his rent will also go up, I'm using his current salary to work out the figure." said Mr Murrihy. "Alright, let's look at it the otheT way. He was paying $20 the same as the other Raetihi houses. At that time he was getting paid more than these other people and his capital value was much higher, so at that time you could say he should have been paying more anyway."

"Well he was given a concession," said Cr Bennett. "But they've all been given concessions as part of their jobs," said Mr Murrihy. "I see what you mean but I don't agree with it," said Cr Bennett. "I've just put a formula there ... I've donc what I was asked to do and obviously it's for

you as councillors to decide what to do," saiu the District Manager. The chairman then asked for other councillor's comments to which Cr Gould said: "Everybody has housing under the same conditions and if the same conditions haven't been applied in the past that is not this District Council's problem." She added that the council needed to avoid allowing an anomaly to develop in the rents charged by council. Cr Bennett said when Mr Sattler's terms o f

employment were finalised his rent could then be set. "I disagree, this seems to be a fair formula based on salary and capital value and I presume that relates to the type of house they're in," said C r Thompson. "I don't disagree with the formula, it seems quite practical," said the chairman. Cr Gould called for the recommendation to full council to stand with the rents set according to Mr Murrihy's formula. "I do admit that it is unfortunate that the inequity has been in the past ... but I think we've got to address it as a whole new situation," she said. A motion was put forward to support the recommendation but was lost. Cr Gould then called for a recommendation that all the council rents stand until the matter of Mr Sattler's rent was resolved. "No I don't agree with that," said Cr Frew. "We wrote away from this council and complained about the teacher's rents going up and here's someone whose rent is being doubled. We weren't w orr ied then about

what sort of criteria had been used for setting the teacher's rents and I think that's too much of a n increase." "In comparison with the salary he's getting?" asked Cr Gould. She said the council couldn't single out one staff member. Cr Compton moved that the committee recommend the rents formula be accepted with the exception of those people whose rents are part of a salary package. Cr Workman said if a lower rent were part of a salary package then the formula should not apply. The district manager pointed out that the formula worked on the basis of subsidized housing. "Exactly, isn't the incentive already there?" said Cr Thompson, referring to the higher rents of other council houses. "No doubt it will be

debated in two week's time," said Cr Bennett, referring to the full council meeting on July 27, to which the committee was to make recommendations.

The committee finally accepted the recommendation to full council that the rents be accepted with the exception of those tied to salaries.