Public service pay: Councils, SunWater, health services CEOs’ earnings revealed
They say it’s lonely at the top, but it’s not poorly paid, with several of the Wide Bay’s senior public servants earning more than the Queensland Premier. Here’s a breakdown of their salaries.
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With five councils and two health services working inside the Wide Bay’s borders, there is no shortage of top public services jobs being held down across Gympie, the Fraser Coast, Bundaberg and the Burnett regions.
Some of them are on top dollar too, with several on a wage that rivals or exceeds that of Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk’s $427,500 pay packet in 2021.
These are the reported salaries for the CEOs in the region’s largest public service organisations, as reported in the 2020-21 financial year.
All figured have been taken from the published annual reports.
Rachel Cooper
Former North Burnett Regional Council CEO Rachel Cooper’s exact wage is unreported.
The annual report shows the council has three senior managers whose salaries fall within the $200,000 - $300,000 range, with the total packet for these positions totalling $700,747.78 for the financial year.
The council’s CEO job is now held by Margot Stork.
She took the job on May 23, 2022, following the abrupt departure of Rachel Cooper in November 2021.
Mark Pitt
The exact wage for South Burnett Regional Council’s CEO Mark Pitt is not outlined in the annual report.
The organisation has four senior managers whose contracts fall inside the $200,000 - $300,000 wage band, according to its latest annual report.
The total remuneration for these staff members in 2020-21 was $976,421.
Shane Gray
The fine points of the pay packet of Gympie Regional Council’s top position, officially vacant for the eight months since CEO Shane Gray’s exit, is not full recorded.
The council’s annual report shows four senior managers have wages which fall inside the $200,000 - $300,000 pay range, with the total cost for the 2020-21 financial year coming to $1.47m.
Financial officer David Lewis has been serving as the acting CEO since Mr Gray’s departure in January 2020.
Ana Rodger
The TAFE east coast general manager Ana Rodger was paid $277,000 in remuneration for the 2020-21 financial year.
This was $16,000 more than her remuneration in 2019-20.
Debbie Carroll
CEO Debbie Carroll was paid $332,000 for her work as the Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service CEO in the 2020-21 financial year.
This was significantly less than the $438,000 reported paid to former CEO Adrian Pennington in the 2019-20 financial report.
Mr Pennington was controversially sacked in 2019.
Steve Johnston
Bundaberg Regional Council CEO Steve Johnston’s salary is not formally reported in the council’s 2020-21 annual report, although media reports from 2021 put the figure in that year at $428,699.
The council reported only one of its five senior managers had a salary within the $400,000 - $450,000 range; the total cost of the council’s senior management for 2020-21 was $1.68m.
Ken Diehm
Fraser Coast Regional Council CEO Ken Diehm is the only one of the Wide Bay’s five councils with a reported salary.
The council’s 2020-21 annual report shows Mr Diehm was paid $442,000 for the financial year
Naomi Dwyer
A total of $537,000 was paid to the heads of the Sunshine Coast Hospital and Health Service, including Naomi Dwyer before her departure.
The longtime CEO received the bulk at $463,000 before she went on annual leave on June 7, 2021 and then later resigning.
Interim CEO Mark Waters received $74,000 for his service at the tail end of the year.
Dr Peter Gillies has since stepped into the CEO job from September 1, 2021.
Glenn Stockton
SunWater CEO Glenn Stockton had the highest remuneration figure of the Wide Bay’s top public servants.
The company’s annual report reported Mr Stockton was paid $594,000 in the 2020-21 financial year, while Lisa Dawson, who worked as the interim CEO until August 2, 2020, received $48,000
Mr Stockton started the next day.
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