Mayor Mike Savage has hired three employees for his office. They are:
Cheryl Stewart, who will have the title of “Principal Advisor to the Mayor.” Stewart left her position as the provincial manager of entrepreneurship at the NSCC to work on Savage’s campaign. She has been hired on a three month contract, making a total of $22,500.
Donna McCready will have the title of “Communications Strategist,” basically the same position ghost -writer Peter Duffy had working for Peter Kelly. McCready, who has her own consulting business, tells The Coast that she intends to return to that business after helping in the transition into the new office. Savage has hired her on a two-month contract, for a total of $12,000.
Josh Bragg will have the title of “Special Assistant.” Bragg was a fundriaser for the provincial Liberal Party. He is hired for a three-month contract, making a total of $14,000.
McCready says that both Stewart and Bragg will likely be hired on a permanent basis, as their contracts expire.
There are also two permanent office staff in the office, Kelly McNamara and Brenda Murphy-Jollimore. Both are long-time city employees. McCready did not know their pay, and city spokesperson Shaune MacKinlay says she can’t get the pair’s pay scales until next week.
All five workers are paid out of the mayor’s budget, which was approved as part of the regular budget process by city council in April.
The former mayoral office manager, Debbie Chalmers, is still employed by the city but has moved to another office.
This article appears in Nov 8-14, 2012.
I am awaiting for the name of the briber in charge, seeing that Savage is a Lieberal to the core it would be in keeping with the Lieberal tradition. He or she will not be hard to spot at city hall, just follow the trail of brown paper bags.
Could I have a glass of tap water as compensation for the shock reading this, please. I have to go tell my fiction writer friends who have best selling novels to quit writing fiction for pennies a day and go write fiction for HRM for thousands of dollars per month.
And is anyone really surprised by this. “Poor Mike” is the same trough eating politician he has always been. Some of us tried to warn the populace but most didn’t listen, well get ready for four more years of this garbage.
So one at $7,500/month, one at $6,000/month, and the other at $4,666/month. Wanna make a bet that these “temporary” jobs become permanent?
Is everyone feeling better that they voted for “Poor Mike” and his poor friends.
Are the salaries a little high? Sure. But what do people expect them to be paid, minimum wage?
$4,700 per month to be an assistant sounds about right to me. It’s a little higher than many assistant jobs, but knowing people who work as assistants to people who are less busy than the mayor of a city, it’s a thankless and difficult job and worth every penny.
I’m sorry, but $6,000 for a communication strategist for a high-ranking political official isn’t particularly high. Being in the communications field, I can tell you that ENTRY LEVEL salaries in the field are a little over half of that. $72,000 per year for a communications position is pretty standard.
You get what you pay for, folks. Sure, the mayor could hire a communications officer for $35,000 and get a student straight out of school who may or my not be capable of handling the job.
I can’t decide if it’s blind hate for Savage, a lack of understanding of competitive wages in a given field or jealousy over the fact that people are doing well.
Municipal employees in every city get paid well and the mayor’s office has a budget for a reason. Just because they’re making more than a bar worker or barista (fully taxable, I might add, so they’ll be paying their fair share) doesn’t make their wages wrong or unreasonable. Someone needs to reign this damn city in.
Again, some people don’t get it. It’s the patronage. “Poor Mike” said he would do business differently and be open and transparent. The more things that come up with “Poor Mike” the more the things stay the same. So much for non-political “Poor Mike”.
Are you calling patronage over the hiring of a former Liberal fundraiser?
If you are, while I disagree with you, I see why you’d argue that. I’m willing to give the benefit of the doubt that he believes, having worked alongside him, that Josh would be best for the job.
He has been open about these hirings, and what little business that he’s done as mayor. He could very well have required a FOIP request to get these numbers, but instead they were readily given.
Given that you keep referring to him as “Poor Mike”, I’d assume based on his campaign stipend, I’m going to guess that it’s blind hate and there’s no debate to be had.
Nope, having lived in his riding I saw he did nothing for the riding. Further when I caught him in a lie about the off-shore royalties he tried to back pedal. So it has nothing to do with his money other than he likes the trough and more on his character and his weaseliness.
Great job and great hires Mike. We are behind you 100%.
This whole fiasco reminds me of mayor Quimby!
Honestly I think all the salaries are high.
If these people worked for private companies, they wouldn’t be making this much.
$7,500 a month is a bit high. Honestly I don’t think anyone would be too concerned if the salaries weren’t paid by the tax payers.
Personally $30 an hour is more than enough for the highest pay in those hires.
These people aren’t saving lives nor should they make the same salary as someone who does.
I agree with Bro Tim. I believe those jobs will become permanent and those individuals will get raises after their temp period.
The mayor makes $159,000 a year. Cheryl makes $90,000 with the current pay.
Once it becomes permanent it’ll probably increase to over $100,000.
I couldn’t care less if it wasn’t tax payers money and that there are way better uses for those funds.
There are many,many people who make much more then these salaries in the private sector,and do much less then will be expected of these positions.I am on of them.Good luck to these successful applicants,and to the Mayor during his term.Someone has to be the Mayor.And from the poison dripping from some of these comments,I can safely say that no-one will ever be able to please some of those out there,so you just ignore the mudslingers and get on with doing the job.As the voters wished for.Good luck,Mike and Halifax.
David, the difference between the private and public sectors is that the private sector has to earn the money they pay to its employees. The public sector just needs to raise taxes. I decide if I want to support a private company, I have no choice but to pay taxes.
It is true a private company and the public sector raise money for salaries differently.If you raise prices too much to pay your employees,you will lose sales or”market share”.If you raise taxes and your ” Executive Board”,disagrees,meaning of course the voters,you will pretty soon be looking for work.People have decided who it is they want making decisions for the current term.Now they get to pass judgement on those decisions at the next election.I’m pretty sure if these appointments are any indication of the quality of decision making that can be expected of Savage,all is going to be OK.