John MacDonald: Chief exec's pay cut is a statement of intent

I don’t know whether Mary Richardson is a martyr or a mug. But, I tell you what, the acting chief executive at Christchurch City Council has shown outstanding leadership, not just outstanding leadership - she’s also shown outstanding political nous with this $100,000 pay cut.

She demanded it because of the financial pressures the council and ratepayers are dealing with, which I believe has gone down very well with staff. Not just because of that, but also because, generally people at the council like her, which is quite an achievement for someone working in senior management anywhere.

But there’s going to be a sting in the tail for everyone working at the council and the rest of us who use council services that’ll get to.

Mary Richardson has been acting chief executive since former council boss Dawn Baxendale quit suddenly late last year, and all along she’s made it clear that she’s not interested in the job full-time and would only be there until the council appoints a new person.

But they haven’t been able to, thirty-seven people applied for the job. It came down to a shortlist of three but Councilors didn’t think any of the candidates were what or who they wanted and so they went to Mary Richardson and said “How ‘bout it? Want the job.”

M

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Canterbury Mornings podcast with John McDonald
from News Talk ZB.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
I don't know whether Mary Richardson, I don't know whether
she's a martyr or a mug, but I tell you what,
the acting Chief Executive at christ Church City Council has
shown outstanding leadership. And not just outstanding leadership, she's also
shown outstanding political nous with this one hundred thousand dollars

(00:33):
pay cut that she has demanded, which she has demanded
because of financial pressures the council and ratepayers are dealing with,
which I believe has gone down very well with staff,
not just because of that, but also because generally people
at the council seem to like her, which is quite
an achievement for someone working in senior management, isn't it anywhere?

(00:57):
But there's going to be a sting in the tail.
There is going to be a sting in the tail,
and this for everybody working at the council and for
the rest of us who you council services. I'll get
to that in a second. So what's happened is Mary
Richardson has been acting Chief execs since former council boss
Daumed Baxendale quit suddenly last year, remember all about that,

(01:17):
and all along, all along, she's made it clear that
she's there as a villain. She's keeping the seat warms.
She's made it clear she's not interested in the job
full time and has been saying that she will only
be there until the council appoints a new person. Tricky
thing is, though they haven't been able to thirty seven
people applied for the job. It came down to a

(01:39):
shortlist of three. And if someone else has already pointed
out today, it is kind of weird, isn't it that
New Zealand's second largest city hasn't been able to find
someone suitable to be head Haunt show At the council
Parity councilors they couldn't decide. They got it down to three,
couldn't decide. They didn't think any of the candidates were
what or who they were looking for, and so they

(02:04):
went to Mary Richardson, who was you know him not
interested in the full time job. They went to her
and said how about it, Hey, you want the job.
And Phil Major, the mayor, obviously did a very good
seal job because she has agreed to take it on
two things though, two conditions. She's told the counsel she

(02:26):
doesn't want to do a full five year term, and
so she's agreed to stick around until June twenty twenty six,
so just under two years. Which brings me back to
the point I made at the start about not knowing
whether she's a martyr or a mug because the other
proviso of her taking on the job that she didn't

(02:48):
actually want was that she be paid one hundred thousand
dollars less than what Dawden Baxendale was paid. Now, I
reckon most people in her position, where you've got an
employer almost begging you to take a job, I reckon
most people would milk it for what they could mean.
I'll be honest with you, I would. I'd milk it

(03:10):
if I was Mary Richardson and I had film major
come to me saying that they bombed out in the
recruitment process. You know, they looked at thirty seven people,
got it down to a short list, still didn't think
they'd found the right person, and would you please take
the job. If I was in her shoes, this is
what I'd be saying. I'd be saying, Yep, I'll do it,
but I want to be paid at least as much

(03:30):
as a last chief exec In fact, I would probably
be push my like a bit, because you know, you
don't ask, you don't get. I'd probably milk the situation
and ask for more. Knowing they were desperate and that
I was the only person they thought was up to
the job, I'd go for more. But Mary Richardson is
obviously a much more honorable person than me, which is

(03:53):
why she has said she'll do the chief executive job
of the council until the middle of twenty twenty six,
but only if they pay her one hundred thousand bucks
less than her predecessor. Not that she's denying herself too much,
by the way, because she'll still be honest four hundred
and fifty k, which is still a good wicket by
anyone's means. But here's the sting in the tale that
I mentioned earlier. You know, it's all been good news,

(04:16):
good news, good news so far. But here's the sting
in the tale. And here's why I think she has
shown outstanding leadership and outstanding political nous. It's been made
very clear, hasn't it that local councils up and down
the country are on notice from the government to cut
costs time and time again, the Prime Minister and the

(04:36):
local government Minister. I've said having there that councils need
to look and learn from what's been happening in government
departments and government agencies that been saying councils need to
do the same and they need to live within their means.
Stop spending, cut the spending, spend on the must haves.
And Mary Richardson has obviously heard that and she's put

(04:58):
a stake in the ground, starting with what she herself
gets paid as the head han show. You see, it's
not an act of good well, that's how some people
are interpreting it and portraying it. It's not an act
of goodwill. It's a statement of intent. It's a statement
much more powerful than any new vision or mission statements

(05:19):
that might have been trodded out by the thirty seven
people who thought they should be chief executive, none of
whom it seems we're actually good enough to get the job.
You see, by insisting on a one hundred thousand dollars
pay cut, Mary Richardson has signaled a period of austerity
at the christ Church City Council. Inside the council and
outside the council. If she has any of her people

(05:41):
coming to her between now in mid twenty twenty six
saying they want to pay their staff more, what do
you think her attitude is going to be. When the
chief executive takes a one hundred thousand dollar pay cut,
what does that say to the rest of the organization.
It says forget about pay rises. That's one of the
things that says. And when Mary Richardson has people saying, oh,
we can't do things any differently or more cheapleep, because

(06:04):
you know that's all been tried before it didn't work. Well,
she's given herself license to demand that they try again.
That's what happens when the person at the top takes
a one hundred thousand dollar pay cut. When someone says
they need more staff, no, sorry, sorry, sorry sorry, the

(06:24):
budget is limited. And you can say that when you're
the person at the top who's taken a one hundred
thousand dollar pay cut, And when the person at the
top takes a one hundred thousand dollar pay cup explicitly
because the council and rate pays are under financial pressures
explicitly for that reason, then that makes it very clear

(06:45):
that you and I can't just keep on demanding more
and more and more of this and that from the council.
So while Mary Richardson will be admired and respected today
inside and outside the City Council for taking one hundred
k off her salary, we need to see it for
what it really is. What it really is is beginning

(07:06):
of significant belt tightening at the Christchurch City Council.

Speaker 1 (07:13):
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