A Freedom of Information request Sudbury.com filed for a presentation which was delivered to city council members during a closed-session last year has been denied.
The presentation was made by city Corporate Services General Manager Kevin Fowke on Dec. 12, 2023, which he said included information regarding that year’s salary adjustments.
This information is relevant because Ward 7 Coun. Natalie Labbée claimed in an open letter published in May that the annual $520,000 cost to hike non-union managers’ salaries last year was “NEVER DISCLOSED” to city council “prior to or during budget discussions, nor was it disclosed to us in any closed documents until it was leaked to Sudbury.com, and I will die on my sword over this FACT!!!!”
This claim has been called into question.
During the May 14 city council meeting, Fowke said that wage-change information was provided to city council during a closed-session meeting in December 2023, around which time the 2024-25 budget discussions Labbée cited were taking place.
Internal email correspondence leaked to Sudbury.com saw city solicitor and clerk Eric Labelle write that Fowke’s slide presentation on Dec. 12, 2023, included information about the salary increases, “with an amount of $520,067 for 2024 and $481,098 for 2025,” and that Fowke had clarified that the amounts were attributable to an increase for pay groups 15-18.
The public, including media, are not typically privy to closed-session reports and presentations.
As such, it’s the word of city staff against that of Labbée.
Sudbury.com sought a copy of the closed-session presentation to publish a definitive answer regarding which side was correct.
Similar to Labbée, Ward 7 Coun. Mike Parent said he was not told about last year’s wage hike, and Ward 4 Coun. Pauline Fortin said she found out about the wage hikes when the public did.
Other members, including Ward 11 Coun. Bill Leduc and Ward 9 Coun. Deb McIntosh, indicated that city council members should have been perfectly aware of the wage hikes, which were awarded within parameters approved by city council. McIntosh said on May 14 that city council was, in fact, provided with the numbers Labbée denies having been given, for 2024/25 budget deliberations.
In addition to filing our recently rejected Freedom of Information request, Sudbury.com sent an inquiry to all 13 members of city council requesting a copy of the closed-session presentation. Although Sudbury.com promised anonymity (doing so would be in breach of the Municipal Act), no elected official opted to supply the requested document.
Sudbury.com learned about last year’s wage increases to non-union pay groups 15-18 after receiving leaked documents in a package signed “Honest City Employees” in March.
The wage increases saw 23 people in pay groups 16-18 receive an eight-per-cent wage hike last year, while eight people in pay group 15 received a six-per-cent boost. These wage increases were in addition to their regularly scheduled three-per-cent annual salary jump, and were intended to boost them back up to the 50th percentile (middle) among similar positions in a list of council-approved comparator municipalities after falling behind, per city council-approved policies.
The increases were approved by city CAO Ed Archer using the delegated authority city council unanimously voted to grant him on Sept. 26, 2023. Another unanimous vote of city council rescinded this delegated authority on May 14.
Sudbury.com’s Freedom of Information request was denied due to an exemption allowed under 6(1)(b) of the Municipal Freedom of Information and Privacy Act.
This line stipulates, “A head may refuse to disclose a record that reveals the substance of deliberations of a meeting of a council, board, commission or other body or a committee of one of them if a statute authorizes holding that meeting in the absence of the public.”
The “may” leaves room for discretion.
An exception to this exception under 6(2)(b) indicates that “a head shall not refuse under subsection (1) to disclose a record if the subject-matter of the deliberations has been considered in a meeting open to the public.”
The “shall not” is definitive.
The matter in question was discussed openly by city council members and staff during the May 14 city council meeting, and Sudbury.com clarified through city spokespeople that “the City is not legally prohibited from making information public re: wage changes for specific pay groups.”
As such, Sudbury.com is appealing the city’s decision and will report on the outcome as soon as it is known.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.
