As of: March 29, 2024, 10:45 a.m
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Andreas Wellmann, board member of the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Association of Cities and Municipalities. © Jens Büttner/dpa
Last summer, the state government announced higher salaries for mayors in view of the upcoming local elections. But the leaders of the municipalities are still waiting for it.
Schwerin - Shortly before the local elections in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the Association of Cities and Municipalities criticized the ongoing impasse in improving mayoral remuneration in the state. Last summer, Interior Minister Christian Pegel (SPD) announced that he would increase salaries and expense allowances for senior local politicians. But the promise has still not been implemented. “Announcing and then nothing happens – these are the wrong signals if we actually want to make the mayor’s offices more attractive,” explained association managing director Andreas Wellmann.
The aim was to create security for this in time for the local elections on June 9th, in which the vast majority of the approximately 700 mostly volunteer mayors would be re-elected. It is particularly incomprehensible that the planned moderate increase in compensation for volunteer mayors will not be implemented.
“What does the Interior Minister want to wait for? My colleagues constantly ask me whether the increase has finally been decided. This behavior does not show any appreciation for local volunteer work,” complained Jens Tiemer, chairman of the working group of volunteer mayors at the Association of Cities and Municipalities and mayor of the municipality of Ganzlin (Ludwigslust-Parchim district).
After a multi-day meeting with volunteer mayors in Rügen at the end of March, association representative Klaus-Michael Glaser stated that it was becoming increasingly difficult to convince younger people to take on such a task. “Many long-serving incumbents only run again because no younger one was found,” he said. In addition to reports of political hostility, many also shied away from running for office because of the often high workload and manageable remuneration.
The state government had already addressed the reform of the remuneration of full-time and honorary mayors in August 2023. “If we want to continue to make this local elective office attractive for suitable applicants, appropriate remuneration or reimbursement of expenses is essential,” Interior Minister Pegel announced after the cabinet deliberations. The changes should be implemented by the end of 2023.
According to the draft, the salaries of full-time employees should be adjusted to the levels usual in other northern German states. This would mean that the same remuneration would be paid for communities with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants - this corresponds to salary group A16, which currently starts at around 6,000 euros per month. The allowances for volunteers should be increased by 20 percent. In the smallest communities with up to 500 residents, the amount would rise to 840 euros per month. The upper end would therefore be 3,600 euros in municipalities with more than 5,000 inhabitants. dpa