EDITORIAL – TNRD board members forget they’re in it for public service

An editorial by Mel Rothenburger.

I’VE SELDOM HEARD such nonsense from a politician as what’s been coming from Thompson-Nicola Regional District board chair Barbara Roden this week.

Roden’s defence of handsome pay increases for both rural board directors and for municipal directors over two years, which I told you about on Monday, is that it’s needed to encourage good people to run, more young people, and minorities.

The amount they get paid isn’t enough, she says, to support a family on. It’s barely minimum wage, she says, and board members “have to have a second job.”

Here’s a news flash: regional district board members aren’t supposed to make a living off their stipends. It’s not supposed to be their primary employment.

It’s about part-time public service. Certainly, they should get paid something for their efforts, and for legitimate expenses.

But it is not, I repeat not, like a regular job. As for this idea that TNRD must keep up with what other regional boards are paying themselves, it simply tells me that other regional district boards have been giving themselves massive raises as well.

Let’s remember that this board gave itself a 19 percent increase for rural directors and 11 per cent for municipal directors in 2019. So this new retroactive four percent plus 15 for rural directors next year, and four plus eight for city directors — which compounds to around 20 and 13 — is par for the course.

Oh, yeah, and the TNRD has gotten back to me with another take on the board’s gaffe in approving the 2024 increase but forgetting to specify what the amount is.

Administration acknowledges that “it could have been made clearer to people who were not already enmeshed in the matter, and will be considering with Chair Roden if any further discussion is required at future meetings.”

Indeed, further discussion should be about fixing the mistake. Better yet, the board should reconsider this out-of-step increase and think about public service.

I’m Mel Rothenburger the Armchair Mayor.

Mel Rothenburger is a regular contributor to CFJC Today, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a recipient of the Jack Webster Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award. He has served as mayor of Kamloops, school board chair and TNRD director, and is a retired daily newspaper editor.  He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.