Recent information from the Taxpayer’s Alliance Town Hall Rich List has revealed that ten members of City of York Council staff are currently being paid over £100,000. The number of staff earning six figure salaries has doubled in the last year. This comes against a backdrop of dissatisfaction with council services and soaring council tax bills.
The Taxpayer's Alliance Town Hall Rich List 2025 found that a record 3,906 council officials across the country received more than £100,000, with 1,092 receiving over £150,000 in 2023-24, another record. One member of staff, the chief executive at Glasgow city council, received £567,317 in total remuneration. This included £209,472 in salary and £357,845 in pension contributions
Speaking about City of York Council's inflation busting salary increases, Cllr Chris Steward said:
Residents will be rightly shocked how much salaries at City of York Council have soared and how many people are now receiving over £100,000. Both the Lib Dems and now Labour seem to almost prioritise as many senior directors as possible, whilst service levels continue to decline. Conservatives have shown in recent budget amendments how we would cut the cost of senior management, but sadly other parties continue to favour these over the top salaries. We have also said York should look to broaden the council area which would ensure a more effective area for the city, typically unitary councils are not fewer than 500,000 people but the Lib Dems and Labour are desperate to keep York at its current size of just 200,000 as they believe this maximises their electoral chances.
However it is not just the amounts directors are paid in York that is an issue, it is the regularity with which roles keep changing, in the last year we have seen a full management reorganisation which saw one director leave and then two more have gone having been assigned to their new, supposedly long-term roles. We also continue to see notable pay-offs, most shockingly when the Lib Dems fell out with the former Chief Executive and she received a payoff of over £400,000 with some estimating the total cost of the payoff and process to be over £1,000,000.
