South Africa’s highest-paid municipal manager, Mike Sutcliffe, intends giving his performance bonus away, the Mercury website reported on Wednesday.
It quoted Sutcliffe, manager of eThekwini municipality in KwaZulu-Natal, as saying he had decided not to accept his bonus for 2004/2005.
Instead, he planned to give the money to a municipal development fund ”where it will be of more benefit”.
Sutcliffe earns R1,091-million a year, the Mercury reported.
The performance bonus is given to officials who perform exceptionally and in the eThekwini Municipality it is capped at 20% of the annual salary.
In Sutcliffe’s case, a 20% bonus could equal close to R220 000.
Sutcliffe said the executive committee had graded his performance in 2003/2004 at a level that entitled him to 70% of his bonus.
His bonus for 2004/2005 had not yet been calculated, but he had already opted not to accept it.
Sutcliffe said he had been inspired by council employees who had cashed in a day’s leave to help Somalian victims of December’s tsunami.
Len Mortimer, former Umvoti municipal manager, said Sutcliffe was not the only city manager who had refused a performance bonus.
Mortimer, who has undertaken a study on the awarding of bonuses, said Umlalazi (Eshowe) municipal manager Chris Gerber had also refused his bonus.
A bonus was either incorporated into the pay package or offered separately, based on performance.
Mortimer said the awarding of such bonuses in KwaZulu-Natal was flawed because no performance management systems were in place. – Sapa