Council Votes to Increase Town Clerk's Salary by 9.4 Percent

The Town Council voted 6-3 Tuesday night along party lines in favor of increasing the salary of West Hartford's from $69,000 to $75,500, an increase of 9.4 percent.

The resolution, which was introduced by Ron Van Winkle and supported by the Council's Democratic majority, inspired a cordial debate between council members from the two political parties, none of which was directly aimed at Town Clerk Essie Labrot who received public praise for the job she does. Labrot, who also serves as clerk of the Town Council, was present for the discussion.

Mayor Scott Slifka, who voted in favor of the increased salary, said that the Council had originally planned to introduce the resolution over the summer out of fairness to all potential Town Clerk candidates prior to the party nominating conventions. The resolution was withdrawn from the agenda for the Town Council's June 28, 2011 meeting because there was not consensus. At the time, the proposed salary increase was to have been 14.5 percent.

Republican Denise Hall, minority leader of the West Hartford Town Council, opposed the salary increase, but said that when it was first proposed this summer, she had immediately told Labrot that this had nothing to do with her personally.

"This is an elected position, and the salary is stated prior to the election. If it wasn't attractive enough, we would not have had candidates willing to go through the rigors to get elected."

Hall said that the Town Clerk's job is in public service, and she does not believe, with the state of the economy, that we should pay more. "To even consider it is unconscionable," she said.

Hall said that approving the increase "sets a tone that we're not serious about controlling costs." She said, "We need to be turning over every single rock to save money. This is one of those things that we are going to have to agree to disagree.”

The other Republican Council members also spoke out against the salary increase. "It’s only $6,500, but it ‘s a 9.4 percent increase," said Burke Doar.

"This is not about Essie; this is about the role," Steve Adler said. "The problem is that unfortunately we’re dealing with a very difficult climate right now."

Statutory regulations permit a salary change only at the beginning or midpoint of a term, and Slifka said they wanted to take care of this now, rather than letting it wait for several years. The Town Clerk is elected every four years. The Town Clerk's salary was reduced by $5,000 four years ago, when Norma Cronin was retiring. The decision to reduce the salary was made at that time due to the economy.

Slifka said that the recent review process indicated the salary for West Hartford's Town Clerk is "out of line" and less than the salary for those who hold the job in smaller districts, and with less responsibility. "The Town Clerk is really a department director, and the [increased salary] still will be less than department directors," Slifka said.

The following comparison of Town Clerk salaries was submitted as part of the resolution:

Van Winkle arrived at the 9.4 percent increase for the Town Clerk's position as a function of the CPI since the last salary change four years ago. "No one really wants to vote for an increase at this time, but the increase is modest and necessary," Slifka said. 

Other Democrats also spoke in favor of the resolution increasing the Town Clerk's salary.

"West Hartford has a reputation for having high level people and excellent professionals. Benchmarks tell me we should be paying our town clerk $85,000 per year. We’re basically suggesting paying out town clerk $10,000 less than the benchmarks," said Clare Kindall.

Leon Davidoff asked, "Is there ever a good time to adjust the salary of the town clerk?" He said the Council needs to look at the larger picture. "In 2009 we had the ability to adjust the salary of the town clerk but we were asking for wage freezes. [If we don't do it now the] next chance to adjust would be in January 2014. That would be six years of staying at the same salary."

Several town residents took advantage of the opportunity to speak out against the salary increase during the Public Forum portion of the meeting. "I really ask, I address this to each and every Democrat on the Council – fiscal restraint please," said Margaret Francoeur.

George Kennedy, president of the West Hartford Taxpayer's Association, said, "Salary parity is not the issue here ... Hello, doesn't anyone realize we're in a recession?" 

The Town Council has responsibility for the salaries of the Town Manager and Corporation Counsel, as well as the Town Clerk. The other positions are appointed rather than elected. "If this were appointed, we'd have to pay a significantly higher salary," Slifka said.

Van Winkle agreed that if he was hiring someone for the position he would pay them at the director level. Pay at the director level actually starts at $77,000, Van Winkle said.

"This was never intended to be political," Slifka said. He added that the resolution does not commit to any future increases, either. "This may be the only increase for the next eight years," he said.