Newmarket taxpayers fork over $178K in severance pay to outgoing council members

Tony Van Bynen, Dave Kerwin, Tom Hempen paid severance after leaving council seats

Yorkregion.com
June 27, 2019
Teresa Latchford

Newmarket taxpayers forked over $177,939 in severance pay for three outgoing members of council in 2018.

According to the Town of Newmarket’s Council Policy Statement, an elected official is entitled to one month's base pay for each completed year of continuous service to a maximum payment of 12 months, with the only exception to the rule being a member of council leaving his or her seat due to being convicted under the Criminal Code.

That 12-month maximum resets if a councillor is defeated, receives severance and is re-elected for another term; it is not a career limit.

However, each councillor does have the option of taking or leaving the severance.

Last December, former Newmarket mayor Tony Van Bynen retired, collecting $95,631 in severance; Ward 2 Coun. Dave Kerwin retired and collected $49,385 and Ward 4 Coun. Tom Hempen did not seek election and was paid $32,923 in severance.

In 2007, the town hired a consultant to conduct a study that found over half of the large municipalities examined offered severance to outgoing elected officials, it is considered a best practice and it aligned the town with York Region’s policy.

“Councillors are not technically an employee of the town so they do not have access to employment insurance, they have no safety net,” Newmarket Mayor John Taylor said. “They leave for a number of reasons and transitioning back into employment can take time.”

Offering severance reduces a barrier that prevents high quality candidates from running for office and encourages younger candidates to run, diversifying council, he added.

He acknowledged there is no severance if you choose to leave a private sector job but points out negotiating a severance package is often done.

Chief administrative officer Jag Sharma said it is not normal practice to review this policy every three years along with the market review conducted for town employee compensation. However, should council choose to review it, the review can be conducted at the same time.
“It’s not unique and severance is part of the overall compensation package,” Van Bynen said. “It is all part of what the market has provided and other municipal service employees get severance.”

Earlier this year, Van Bynen announced his intention to enter the Newmarket-Aurora federal riding race.

“If I am successful, the federal position won’t start until later in the year so there is no double dipping,” he said when asked about receiving severance and then announcing he will be gunning to be the local Liberal candidate in the upcoming election.

Newmarket isn't an outlier; many municipalities in the Greater Toronto Area pay severance to departing councillors. But there's no common standard when it comes to the maximum amount that is paid out.

In Mississauga, the maximum amount of severance pay is 12 months of pay for 12 years of service. Longtime mayor Hazel McCallion, who served Mississauga as mayor for 36 years before retiring in 2014, received $139,374.

Similarly, in Toronto, the severance package is 12 months of pay for a maximum of 12 years, and 10 councillors claimed that amount in 2018, earning $114,306.

In Stouffville, departing councillors are also paid one month of pay for a maximum of 12 months for 12 years of service.

The standard in Richmond Hill is one month of pay for a maximum of 18 months, similar to Markham, while in Vaughan, the severance extends all the way up to 24 months, prorated for part years of service.

However, in Aurora and Georgina, retiring or defeated councillors aren't paid severance.

Lawyer Sunira Chaudhri of Levitt Employment Law doesn’t mince words.

“In the private sector, if you retired you would get zero, not a severance package. Deciding to ‘retire’ and quitting your role are exactly the same thing. People should not choose to go into politics as a lifelong career. You are meant to bring experience to make a short-term impact,” Chaudhri said.

Robert MacDermid, retired York University professor of politics with a specialty in municipal politics, believes politicians deserve severance pay when they leave office.

“A political career often means leaving or foregoing a better-paid job to take a political position that isn’t very well paid (in comparison to the private sector) considering the importance of the decisions made, most employees qualify for severance.”