The Alison Redford transgressions thread. Update- Redford quits.

[CaptainCrunch]

Unless Alison needed legal advice on a constant basis because of her dealings, but then she should be paying for her own lawyer.

Isn't a chief of staff responsible for getting her the information she needs, coordinating her schedule, acting as a conduit with people that want to meet with her. Briefing her on government business?

Yup we certainly should be paying that person more then Obama's chief of staff.

[Slava]

You know what, forget it. Its obvious that you guys can't see the rationale for hiring a qualified person and paying them accordingly to what effectively amounts to a $45B business. That's fine. Just hold that same standard when the premier is someone you like instead of Redford. I'll remind you that they should be earning closer to $75k a year and have two weeks vacation.

[Shawnski]

It isn't a business Slava. Get that through your head.

[darklord700]

Funny how it was those overpaid highly qualified people who booked the $45K trip for Redford and got her fired.

[LanceUppercut]

Originally Posted by Slava

You know what, forget it. Its obvious that you guys can't see the rationale for hiring a qualified person and paying them accordingly to what effectively amounts to a $45B business. That's fine. Just hold that same standard when the premier is someone you like instead of Redford. I'll remind you that they should be earning closer to $75k a year and have two weeks vacation.

Qualified is one thing, paying double for a chief of staff than what the President of the United States spends? (My numbers could be wrong). The same united states with 3.8 trillion dollars in expenditure?

[Handsome B. Wonderful]

Originally Posted by Slava

You know what, forget it. Its obvious that you guys can't see the rationale for hiring a qualified person

What were their qualifications, aside from being Alison Redford's cohorts?

[Flash Walken]

Originally Posted by LanceUppercut

Qualified is one thing, paying double for a chief of staff than what the President of the United States spends? (My numbers could be wrong). The same united states with 3.8 trillion dollars in expenditure?

No one that serves in an American Presidential Administration considers salary in the slightest when taking that job.

The exposure is worth more than most dollar figures could ever meet.

Comparing the two hurts any argument you're trying to make. What does BC or Ontario pay comparable staff members?

[LanceUppercut]

http://www.fin.gov.on.ca/en/publicat...ssembly12.html

Looks like a chief of staff is about 170k a year.. what was Redford's making? 300+?

[Resolute 14]

Originally Posted by Slava

You know what, forget it. Its obvious that you guys can't see the rationale for hiring a qualified person and paying them accordingly to what effectively amounts to a $45B business. That's fine. Just hold that same standard when the premier is someone you like instead of Redford. I'll remind you that they should be earning closer to $75k a year and have two weeks vacation.

An astronaut may be a highly qualified individual, but if you hire one to manage a restaurant, you don't pay them an astronaut's wage. You pay them a wage appropriate to that of a restaurant manager.

[Flash Walken]

Originally Posted by Flash Walken

No one that serves in an American Presidential Administration considers salary in the slightest when taking that job.

The exposure is worth more than most dollar figures could ever meet.

Comparing the two hurts any argument you're trying to make. What does BC or Ontario pay comparable staff members?

They justify it by asserting, talented people won’t do these jobs unless the compensation is sufficient to attract them.

Former prime minister Jean Chretien, who engineered a significant boost to politicians’ pay back in the nineties, argued robust pay packets for MPs are fully justified.

Base pay for federal MPs got boosted again two months ago, to $160,200.

And politicians have a penchant for manoeuvering pay hikes just before legislative breaks. In this latest case, Clark’s outgoing cabinet quietly made the arrangement on June 3.

The assumption doubtless is that voters forget by the time the next election rolls around.

The B.C. premier is paid $193,500 a year, consisting of an MLA’s base pay of $101,859 with the balance paid for being premier.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper earns $320,000 annually.

Meanwhile, mean family income in Canada is $69,860.

In B.C., it’s lower: $66,970 — only marginally higher than incomes in Manitoba. (BC Stats puts average incomes for hourly employees at $45,604.)

Yet, Manitoba’s premier receives just $164,500 a year, MLAs, $89,500.

Whether you think politicians are too highly paid or not paid enough, they surely ought to earn more than their political staffers.

In B.C.’s case, according to these latest pay hikes, Clark’s deputy chief of staff Michele Cadario will earn more than her boss — $195,148.

Chiefs of staff to B.C. ministers will now be able to earn $102,000 — slightly more than an MLA.

But the best basis of comparison for political staffers is what their counterparts elsewhere are earning.

In Ontario, with a population three times that of B.C., a deputy chief of staff to the premier earns $161,054, a chief of staff, $263,948.

http://www.vancouversun.com/business...984/story.html

[Slava]

I have no idea why you guys are still replying to me. You're completely right. I can hardly wait to see your favourite premier elected and see who they hire for Chief of Staff. It's going to be amazing.

Half of the joking posts on CP are about guys who don't get out of bed for $100k a year, yet some people here figure we should pay less than that, with no severance and two weeks vacation. Should do the trick.

[RedHot25]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

I guess I would ask why Alison would possibly need a senior partner from a law firm to be her chief of staff?

that to me screams way over qualified for the job and there are already plenty of lawyers for the job.

And he did seem to be pretty incompetent or tied to the gravy train.

?

I'm not defending, just noting that I think a chief of staff typically has very high qualifications. Yes, I know its a federal / provincial comparison, but as an example:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigel_S._Wright

Prior to his appointment as chief of staff, Wright was the managing director of Onex Corporation, and is considered a bit of a star on Bay Street. Wright has law degrees from Harvard Law School and the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, and previously served in Brian Mulroney's office, as a speech writer and policy advisor.

And apparently in Sask, as another example: http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarp...d-2519d0c06867
(article is old, but from what I can tell he is now Walls' Chief of Staff)

While he spent some years as a bush pilot and a few brief months as a provincial civil servant in the 1980s, it is business that has been Donlevy’s life.

In the late 1980s he became friends and business partners with Ted Merriman as co-owners of Medallion Pipe, a multimillion-dollar business.

Not saying right or wrong for any of all this, just that typically a chief of staff is usually, well I guess you could say quite high up.

[Slava]

I would say the penthouse suite is a far more egregious issue. That's the easiest target ever. I mean they thought they could sneak that one in without anyone caring?!

[RedHot25]

EDIT: oops, sorry, didn't realize I was referencing the same article as above. I guess Darklord can give me a hard time now too

Originally Posted by LanceUppercut

Qualified is one thing, paying double for a chief of staff than what the President of the United States spends? (My numbers could be wrong). The same united states with 3.8 trillion dollars in expenditure?

BC apparently had this problem too, only it was the deputy chief of staff there: http://www.vancouversun.com/business...984/story.html

And apparently also as well, Ontario is in trouble as well, as they pay their chief of staff more as well. Their deputy effectively makes the same as Obama's as well.

Premier's deputy chief of staff to be paid more than Obama’s chief of staff

In B.C.’s case, according to these latest pay hikes, Clark’s deputy chief of staff Michele Cadario will earn more than her boss — $195,148.
Chiefs of staff to B.C. ministers will now be able to earn $102,000 — slightly more than an MLA.
But the best basis of comparison for political staffers is what their counterparts elsewhere are earning.
In Ontario, with a population three times that of B.C., a deputy chief of staff to the premier earns $161,054, a chief of staff, $263,948.
President Barack Obama’s chief of staff, Denis McDonough, earns $172,200 annually.

Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/business...#ixzz2xI1o1SmG

[LanceUppercut]

Adatia, a lawyer at Bennett Jones LLP, lost in last week’s provincial election as the Progressive Conservative candidate in Calgary-Shaw. He had earlier served as chief financial officer in Redford’s Tory leadership campaign.

http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/Al...432/story.html

So, this hand picked Chief of Staff who a week before was up for that cushy (134k) a year that MLA's make. A week later, he couldn't suffer a job without making 300k a year? Look, qualified positions deserve compensation. I'm not saying that a chief of staff should only make 75k a year and have absolutely no benefits. What I am saying is that 300k in this case seems egregious.

[Voodooman]

At least Adatia has some sort of qualifications. What about this Ryan Barberio character? $130,000 (plus another $30k in pension benefits) to be Redford's executive assistant, which I envision as a role close to what Tony Hale (Aka Buster Bluth) plays on Veep. Basically, hold her makeup, tell her she looks pretty and carry a daytimer.

Clearly, worth $160,000 per year.

EDIT: And I just noticed that shockingly, he's been handed another $160k per year government job, and shuffled off and out of sigh to the US. I guess loyalty does pay.

[Bunk]

You could argue the White House Chief of Staff, is ridiculously underpaid considering their responsibility - and you'd be right.

Nevertheless, you could also argue that in Alberta, at the Provincial level, compensation for various staff is out of whack - and you'd also be right.

Speaking as a political staffer I can tell you that the amount and type of work in political offices is not well understood by most people (Captain Crunch's post being an example of that - that job is super, super intense - likely 70-80 hrs a week of extremely high stress). They are certainly deserving of solid compensation - you need that to attract talented, competent people.

That said, it is public service and there clear limitations of political office budgets paid for by the public purse. So there is an understanding of some level of sacrifice vs what can be earned for equivalent positions in the private sector (or even other public sector jobs). Virtually everyone in our office either took a pay cut or could now be earning substantially more in other jobs based on our qualifications and skill sets. Longer term, our careers, assuming we're successful, will benefit hugely from that kind of unique experience.

Quite simply, you do not need a salary well in excess of $300k to have a well qualified Chief of Staff. Or over $200k for a communications staffer. I'd argue everyone here (at the Municipal level in the Mayor's Office) is highly qualified (and would be too in a Premier's Office - considering our city is larger than 5 provinces) and don't make anywhere close to those in the Alberta's Premier's Office, nor do we have anything that resembles the absurd severance packages offered there.

[Jacks]

Originally Posted by Slava

I would say the penthouse suite is a far more egregious issue. That's the easiest target ever. I mean they thought they could sneak that one in without anyone caring?!

I think it's the seemingly never ending list of things. Personally I didn't care that she went to South Africa, it was just that she seemed to choose the most expensive way of doing everything. Noone is expecting a 70K chief of staff or for Redford to be flying coach but there is a middle ground that most policians seem to find.

[Aarongavey]

Originally Posted by RedHot25

EDIT: oops, sorry, didn't realize I was referencing the same article as above. I guess Darklord can give me a hard time now too



BC apparently had this problem too, only it was the deputy chief of staff there: http://www.vancouversun.com/business...984/story.html

And apparently also as well, Ontario is in trouble as well, as they pay their chief of staff more as well. Their deputy effectively makes the same as Obama's as well.

Population is irrelevant. If Ontario is suppose to be some sort of litimus test it would mean that based on population the chief of staff to Brad Wall should make 20,303 dollars a year or so and the chief of staff in PEI should make 2,778 dollars a year or so.

[RedHot25]

Originally Posted by Aarongavey

Population is irrelevant. If Ontario is suppose to be some sort of litimus test it would mean that based on population the chief of staff to Brad Wall should make 20,303 dollars a year or so and the chief of staff in PEI should make 2,778 dollars a year or so.

I didn't mention anything about population? Or am I missing something?

Just did a random google for a couple of provinces; looks like most make same or more than Obama's for whatever its worth, right or wrong.

All that to say, I think Bunk's point was excellent and captured everything eloquently.