Calgary city council salaries to increase 2.41% in 2023

The pay bump in 2023 is the second raise city councillors will see, following a three-year pay freeze from 2019 to 2021. (Monty Kruger/CBC - image credit)
The pay bump in 2023 is the second raise city councillors will see, following a three-year pay freeze from 2019 to 2021. (Monty Kruger/CBC - image credit)

Calgary city councillors will see their salaries increase by 2.41 per cent on Jan. 1, 2023.

The raises are automatic and based on Statistics Canada's average weekly earnings for Alberta workers from September to September, according to a formula set by an independent board.

Mayor Jyoti Gondek gets a salary increase of about $4,900 — bringing her annual pay to $208,707.

As of Jan. 1, city councillors will make $117,913 per year.

In a statement to CBC News, Coun. Gian-Carlo Carra said he's supportive of politicians having nothing to do with their compensation.

"As our pay is tied to the median income of Albertans, a pay raise after several years of cuts and last year's ever-so-slight increase is a green shoot with regards to the state of our economy," said Carra in a statement.

It's the second pay raise councillors will see, following a three-year pay freeze between 2019 and 2021.

In 2022, councillor salaries went up by 1.6 per cent.

Coun. Kourtney Penner said in a statement that the raise acknowledges that the workload of city councillors increases as Calgary's population rises.

"Along with increasing demands from Calgarians to handle complex societal issues, growth and infrastructure management and how we compete in a globalized economy," said Penner in a statement.