Government pay cuts - QLDC/CODC say "too early to make decision."

Following the decision earlier today by the PM to cut her own pay as well as Ministers and public service CEO's we asked both the QLDC and CODC if they would be making a similar move. Here is the reply received from the QLDC comms and marketing team. We sent our request to both council CEO's direct. The CODC's CEO has replied and we publish her response below that of the QLDC.

“Thank you for your question. As you state, this announcement has only just been made by the Prime Minister, and at this stage it is too early for us to understand the details of what is being proposed and how far reaching these interim measures are proposed to be. We do note it was made clear this would not be something that applied to frontline public service workers, which is essential to ensure that essential services continue to be delivered and that planning can continue on vital recovery programmes.

“The Council’s team is investigating the details, and once these are understood we will be discussing what this may or may not mean for QLDC.”

From Sanchia Jacobs, CEO of the CODC.

"In response to your query, we will need to take some time to consider the Prime Minister’s full announcement and understand how far reaching it is and what this in turn it might mean for the local government sector. This will be considered as part of the many discussions the executive will be having on how CODC can show leadership and help our community recover from the impact of COVID-19."

Here is the full detail of the Government pay cut:

The Prime Minister, Government ministers and public service chief executives will take a pay cut of 20 per cent over the next six months, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced today.

“It is the right thing to do, and I acknowledge chief executives for volunteering to take the pay cut alongside us,” Jacinda Ardern said.

“I feel acutely the struggle many New Zealanders are facing and so too do the people I work with.

“While this cut in itself won’t shift the Government’s overall fiscal position it is an acknowledgement that every person and organisation has a part to play as we unite to stamp out Covid-19 and save lives.

“It stands alongside many actions taken by all of us – Government, private sector, citizens, to tackle the health and economic challenges of Covid-19 including:

• The more than $23 billion economic package, including the wage subsidy that has paid out over $9 billion to 1.5 million New Zealanders
• Neighbours looking out for one another
• Rent freezes and landlords supporting tenants
• Boosting the winter energy payment and benefits
• New Zealanders staying home to save lives
• The Student Army delivering groceries to over 65s
• The Ministry of Health officials in charge of mandatory quarantine, for which I’ve received a message about their professionalism and exceptional work

“For us it’s about showing leadership,” Jacinda Ardern said.

“This isn’t about pay cuts at the front line. We don’t want people on low and middle incomes to bear the brunt,” Minister for State Services Chris Hipkins said.

“They make up a huge part of our essential workforce. We need to sustain public sector jobs and ensure services continue to be delivered.

“The decision we’ve made is an in-principle one. We will now work through the mechanism to make it happen,” Chris Hipkins said.

Decisions taken today mean pay cuts for chief executives are likely to save $1.6 million, and an example of ministers’ cuts are in the table below.