Some of the City of Moose Jaw’s highest paid employees in 2019 were in the emergency services field, while only one city hall administrator made the top 10 for highest salaries.
Municipal officials presented the document during city council’s Aug. 24 regular meeting. The public accounts report listed every municipal employee who earned more than $50,000 last year, along with every company that did business with city hall and was paid more than $50,000.
Council voted 6-1 to receive and file the document; Coun. Brian Swanson was opposed.
Employees’ salaries
Many of the top-paid municipal employees happen to work in emergency services, according to the report. Finance director Brian Acker explained that periodically, there is significant retroactive pay that is given to employees due to contract negotiations. This means that retroactive pay for 2017 and 2018 was recorded in the 2019 accounts and why salaries look so high.
Based on the report, some of the highest-paid municipal employees last year were:
- Fire Chief Rod Montgomery: $205,284.88
- City manager James (Jim) Edward Puffalt: $205,258.46
- Police Chief Rick Bourassa: $183,791.97
- Deputy Fire Chief Michael Russell: $173,303.57
- Shift Capt. Laurie D. Evans: $171,662.66
- Assistant Fire Chief Rodney D. Stapleton: $172,452.70
- Shift Capt. Chris J. Ozog: $169,703.43
- Shift Capt. Curtis D. Beler: $169,129.07
- Deputy Police Chief Rick D. Johns: $167,527.19
- Shift Capt. Brock Roy Knipfel: $166,734.28
Council remuneration
The mayor and city council received the following remuneration and covered expenses last year:
- Coun. Heather Eby: $27,460.32 / $954.20
- Coun. Crystal Froese: $26,863.98 / $2,951.40
- Coun. Dawn Luhning: $26,840.52 / $30
- Coun. Scott McMann: $25,204.38 / $501.82
- Coun. Brian Swanson: $25,204.38 / $0
- Coun. Chris Warren: $27,260.52 / $51.82
- Mayor Fraser Tolmie: $83,789.51 / $11,690.32
The next regular council meeting is Tuesday, Sept. 8.
