Labour costs for employees in the bureaucratic machine of the City of Vancouver are amongst the municipal government’s largest and fastest-growing operational budget line items for more than a decade.

Based on the municipal government’s newly released 2022 financial statement, the salaries of employees reached $628.4 million last year, including $400 million for employees earning over $75,000 annually and $228 million for employees earning under $75,000 annually.

These salaries accounted for 36% of the municipal government’s 2022 operating budget of $1.75 billion.

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Compared to 2021, there was a 7.2% year-over-year increase in the total budget for salaries, when $586 million was spent for such expenses. The number of employees making over $75,000 increased by about 200 employees from about 3,311 City staff in 2021 to about 3,515 City staff 2022.

It should be noted that these workforce size and salary figures do not include the Vancouver Police Department and several other City-supported agencies and entities.

With all that said, how much does upper management of the City of Vancouver make?

As expected, City manager Paul Mochrie made $343,549 in 2022 — just over $10,000 shy of what his predecessor, Sadhu Johnston, made in 2020, after filling the top bureaucrat role for about five years.

Those directly below Mochrie in the City’s leadership chain are deputy City manager Karen Levitt and deputy City manager Armin Amrolia, who made $302,926 and $245,733, respectively.

City of Vancouver leadership flow chart, 2022. (City of Vancouver)

City of Vancouver leadership team, 2022. (City of Vancouver)

The most significant new additional leadership position is held by Mike Macdonell, who is the Auditor General of Vancouver, leading an independent office that provides separate oversight of the municipal government’s finances, management, and operations. The previous makeup of Vancouver City Council approved the creation of an Auditor General’s Office to help reduce costs and improve efficiencies. In his first full year in the role, in 2022, Macdonell made $252,518.

Here is a rundown of the salaries of the City of Vancouver’s bureaucratic leadership:

1. Paul Mochrie: City manager — $343,549
2. Patrice Impey: chief financial officer and general manager of finance, risk and supply chain management — $309,456
3. Francie Connell: director of legal services — $308,056
4. Sandra Singh: general manager of arts, culture, and community services — $306,774
5. Karen Levitt: deputy city manager — $302,926
6. Lon LaClaire: general manager of engineering services — $293,356
7. Donnie Rosa: general manager of parks and recreation — $290,478
8. Theresa O’Donnell: director of planning and general manager of planning, urban design, and sustainability — $281,185
9. Christina de Castell: chief librarian and CEO of the Vancouver Public Library — $267,662
10. Karen Fry: chief of Vancouver Fire Rescue Services — $263,828
11. Andrea Law: general manager of development, buildings, and licensing — $254,823
12. Mike Macdonell: auditor general of Vancouver — $252,518
13. Andrew Naklicki: chief of human resources — $251,361

Separately, these are the 2022 salaries of the previous makeup of Vancouver City Council:

1. Kennedy Stewart (mayor): $181,679
2. Melissa De Genova (city councillor): $113,923
3. Pete Fry (city councillor): $108,740
4. Rebecca Bligh (city councillor): $103,987
5. Lisa Dominato (city councillor): $103,987
6. Sarah Kirby-Yung (city councillor): $102,255
7. Colleen Hardwick (city councillor): $102,065
8. Christine Boyle (city councillor): $101,265
9. Adriane Carr (city councillor): $101,265
10. Mike Wiebe (city councillor): $97,868
11. Jean Swanson (city councillor): $91,063

The 2022 salary figures include the totals for re-elected city councillors Fry, Bligh, Dominato, Kirby-Yung, Boyle, and Carr for the first month-and-a-half of their new term between the second week of November and the end of December.

Newly elected city councillors Mike Klassen, Peter Meiszner, Brian Montague, and Lenny Zhou each earned $10,552 in 2022. Over the same period, newly elected Mayor Ken Sim earned $20,970.

The remuneration for city councillors also varies from acting mayor duties, deputy mayor duties, and duty councillor duties.

And these are the 2022 salaries of the previous makeup of the Vancouver Park Board’s elected commissioners, which is considered a part-time job:

1. Stuart MacKinnon (2022 chair): $20,607
2. Camil Dumont (commissioner): $16,843
3. Tricia Barker (commissioner): $16,638
4. John Coupar (commissioner): $16,638
5. Dave Demers (commissioner): $16,638
6. Gwen Giesbrecht (commissioner): $16,638
7. John Irwin (commissioner): $16,638

The newly elected makeup of Park Board commissioners each earned just over $2,000 for their first few weeks on the job in late 2022, apart from Scott Jensen who earned $2,604 for his role as the chair.

You might also like:
• Opinion: The growth of the City of Vancouver's bureaucracy is out of control
• Opinion: City of Vancouver needs to focus on its basic municipal responsibilities
• Vancouver City Council approves 10.7% property tax increase for improving basic services
• Without sewer reinvestments, Vancouverites might be unable to flush toilets in 20 years
• Vancouver City Council to eliminate most protected view cones of City Hall for transit-oriented development