Cornwall Ontario – With the public screaming about high taxes, outside lawyers vulturing businesses getting MPAC valuations down to the point of impacting city budgets, and talk of a 6% tax hike to help fill empty infrastructure reserves, Council approved huge wage increases for senior management including CAO Maureen Adams.
Most of Cornwall’s Senior Management don’t even live in Cornwall which adds to taxpayer frustration; yet they make decisions that lead to sky high tax rates, strange boycotts of local business, and a failed Economic Development team.
Adding insult to injury there have been allegations of strange hiring and promotion practices under Ms Adams.
One email that was sent to CFN alleged:
.
So the city advertised for one deputy clerk, everyone knew they would hand pick debbie caskenet anyway yet have a look at the agenda for the next council meeting. It would appear that once again the CAO is making it very easy for her pretty boy as he is also being appointed deputy clerk??.So, why in the hell would another city employee not have had a chance at this second position? no posting for any employee to have a chance to even apply what so ever. Yet Geoff Clark is being appointed through a back door???.This is real BS and not fair at all city employees. We like how it’s sort of kept quiet and simply added into the meeting thinking no one would notice and council would just approve the bylaw..Maybe they fear once caskenets husband is locked up for fraud they will have to move her out so doing this they are prepared?? help us Jamie with this please.
.
HR Manager Clarke’s latest bump up was rubber stamped at this week’s council meeting with no discussion or dissent.
.
Ms Adams, who’s a neighbor of former Clerk Denise Labelle Gelinas in Long Sault, refused to answer basic questions yesterday via email. HR Manager Geoff Clarke didn’t answer any emails to this newspaper. Fire Chief Pierre Voisine was busy spending thousand of tax dollars making music videos while still refusing to issue releases of fire incidents in the city so the media could report to taxpayers so they could get an idea if they’re getting value for our ever increasing fire services budget.
.
From Sunshinelist.ca we pulled up some quick numbers. The Sunshine List is published each year including earnings from public servants in Ontario that pull down over $100K.
From 2016 to 2017 Raises
CAO Maureen Adams a WHOPPING 12%! ($175,902.94)
.
Not sure what or if he does anything, Mark Boileau 13% after a 6% raise in 2016! ($152,333.09)
.
HR & now Deputy Clerk Geoff Clarke 6.25% ($142,635.31)
.
Myles Cassidy 11% after a 2016 raise of 5.38% ($158,470.26)
.
Police Chief Dan Parkinson 5% ($194,396.50)
.
Deputy Police Chief Danny Aikman 6% ($172,494.80)
.
While this write agrees that the fiscal line needs to be held isn’t it utterly hypocritical to tell employees that their wages will be frozen while management takes huge raises?
.
CUPE represents many city staff. Local 3251 reps 152 full timers, local 234 reps 85, local 1792 reps 59, and local 5734 another 64.
.
Ironically under former HR manager Robert Menagh there was more of a towing of the line with his highest raise being 6.8% after two years with no increase. Mr. Menagh was thrown under the bus by council as his termination agreement would prevent him from potentially testifying against disgraced former CAO Paul Fitzpatrick. He was terminated without cause.
.
The City is now getting ready to negotiate salaries in an election year. It should be interesting how that shakes out.
.
We will be updating this story.
.
What do you think about management taking huge raises while the city swims backward fiscally dear CFN viewers?
.
You can actually post your comments below.
.
And please click the donate button below if you wish more news like this. All donations are confidential and with some of these same City Managers leading a conspiratorial boycott of this newspaper we, like so many other media depend on viewer support.
It amazes me how out of wack the salaries are compared to other smaller and larger cities. For example T.O has roughly 55 councilors for their population. Which works out to about 55,000 people per councilor. We have 10 councilors for roughly 43,000 people! Give me a break…what does our council do ? As for upper mgt. Again in my opinion we are not getting our tax paying money’s worth !
Not much to say besides DISGUSTING and MAKING USE OF THE BACK DOOR AGAIN (double entendre again!!!)
Now doesn’t this bring back memories for yours truly in the federal government of having job postings put up to try to get ahead and all the time someone is pulled in through the back door. I will never forget the insanity of the government ever and dd wants nothing to do with government at all especially under Justine and liberals. OMG the things that we talk about at home and elsewhere.
Cornwall is a real joke. 10 councellors for 43K or even less – 43K is an old number and most are dead and others left town. Even if Cornwall had a population of 43K 10 councellors is way too many. My riding alone is as big as Cornwall if not bigger and this is insane. Torontos population is 6 million and counting. That is insane to have so many councellors. No work so they all gouge the taxp
To add to Brain…..if you look at the sunshine list why would you have management personnel making the same or more money compared to a Toronto manager where you have a greater populous and more employees under you. Look for yourself people the data is there, must be nice!
With management salaries going up who don’t do anything but kill flies and the little people who do the work and get nothing are going to freeze in the dark. That reminds me of old scrooge since Christmas is coming and people will not be able to pay for things – it is getting a great deal worse. I put hubby into depression over the cost of his cigarettes going sky high.
There are many people that already speculate why the CAO and Clark are more then coworkers, you wonder why the rumors run rapid? Councilors, you all looked down on us last meeting from your chambers, some of you coming outside preaching this motion of no raise had nothing to do with you, but you allowed this? Someone one needs to be fired now! Thanks for posting the email Jamie.
WE CAN NEVER POST OUR NAMES, remember what they did to Diane Shay? Clarke and Adams both need to be fired, two very deceitful, selfish people. Grow some balls council and Mr. Mayor grow some balls. Remember, elections are coming. Next time, next meeting “we” will be looking up.
This is why I love CFN, real stories that need to be told. You won`t see this in any of the other news sites. This is disgusting behavior on the managers and councils part, and action needs to be taken. A huge wage increase just like that, while union workers have to fight and beg for what is rightfully owed to them. Absolutely sick. BTW, why does Parkinson make almost $200,000 a year? Seems high.
Well when you have a police force step on a mayoralty opponent there’s always a cost….Look at Aikman’s salary. For our deputy chief? Really? He must do an awful lot of overtime….
Jerry if you really love CFN it’s time to encourage businesses you use to call us and buy an ad. Besides being the best value and having the largest audience locally, it helps us do the very stories that attract our audience. And more viewers really need to hit those donate buttons.
Ms Adams, refused to answer basic questions yesterday via email. HR Manager Geoff Clarke didn’t answer any emails to this newspaper. What are they both afraid of? No response = cover up and guilt. Remember, the higher the salary the better the pensions. Time for termination papers to be issued ASAP, you listening Mr. Mayor, you failed Diane Shay and for doing so you also failed all Cornwall.
All those humougous salaries for tiny nothing of a town like Cornwall has to do with how many flies that they can all kill in one day. The entire bunch must be thrown out at once and there has to be a takeover from the outside to come in and straighten out the mess. This cannot go on anymore. This is completely insane and out of control.
Jamie you have the very best paper in town and that is the truth. You don’t get any truth from the toilet papers of record in Cornwall at all. That is all the other papers are toilet papers. The toilet papers of record are bought out by the town to conceal the truth about what is going on. Jamie you are NUMBER 1 in business as well as the good person that you are. Keep up the great work.
They screw the city employees and police, fire, ems and managers get big raises, but tax time administration and council could not reduce our taxes…creeps have to go.
Pete it’s not just council. We need to clean house like Brampton did when they fired about 25 managers. People need to be accountable when earning public monies.
Some time ago I thought about Cornwall being amalgamated with its rural towns and that way the tax system would be divided and everyone would be responsible. Yes outside of town there is mostly well water and not city water but then the rural areas would have to come into the ways of the town, water, sewer, etc. You cannot use the facilities of Cornwall and get away with not paying your fare sha
Interesting article. There is one other group that consistently is ignored and that is the non union group which is middle management which I belong to. Our increases have traditionally been dictated by the Management Group which has been equal or less than the Union/Assoc.
Take Care,
Diane Shay
Mrs. Shay has been dragged through the mill and then some. This lady was out ot protect her patients and others from the abuse and who received the abuse was Mrs. Shay. This mayor is a laughable person along with his laughable and know nothing council. The swamp has to be drained from top to bottom as soon as possible. The town (Cornwall) lost everything and is pretty well a ghost town.
This morning we spoke with the former teacher that we know here in Ottawa and he is selling his condo and is going to rent an apartment in Aylmer P.Q. that has a shopping mall attached to it. That is what I was saying about what Cornwall should do with the old Sears Store and have a grocery store there as well. Architects can fix the problem at Cornwalls mall for senior apartments (rentals).