Some see it as an “excessive increase”, the town hall speaks of an “upgrading of the other major cities of France”. From this Friday, the elected municipal officials of Nantes will gain in purchasing power. Voted at the end of June, a deliberation provides for the increase of their allowances, as permitted by law. “Reconciling personal life, personal life and elected mandate is more and more difficult and restrictive, whether in terms of workload and availability, explains the city. Many elected officials have to take part-time or leave their jobs, incompatible with the agenda of elected officials in charge of skills in a city of 350,000 inhabitants. »
Concretely, the assistants who received 1,523.25 euros gross so far will now earn 2,339.84 euros gross each month (+ 47%). For municipal councilors holding a delegation, the amount goes from 1,025.7 euros to 1,509.57 euros gross. Municipal councilors without delegation will be paid a monthly allowance of 301.91 euros gross, against 287.02 previously. That of the mayor, Johanna Rolland, remains unchanged (5,837 euros gross per month).
By way of comparison, the deputy mayors receive 2,717 euros in Nice, 2,153 in Montpellier, or even 2,382 euros in Strasbourg, assures the city, which recalls that the allowances had “not been reviewed since the 1990s”. It should be noted, however, that a majority of elected officials are also metropolitan councillors, and receive another sum of money thanks to this function.
A “decent level of compensation”
“In the current context of increasing violence suffered by elected officials, this question of the amount of compensation questions more broadly the status that we wish to give them in our democracy, explains the first deputy (PS) Bassem Asseh. It is essential to protect them and provide them with a decent level of compensation. “To be in the opposition is to be less considered”, however regrets the opposition municipal councilor Renaissance Erwan Huchet, who deplores the “break in equality” which according to him exists between the elected representatives with delegation (of the majority ) and without.
The mayor of Nantes, Johanna Rolland, replies that the law does not allow to go further anyway. “It’s not the same workload either,” she says.