Naugatuck Controller Wayne McAllister will continue as the business manager until the end of 2012.
The Board of Education voted unanimously during its meeting on Thursday to extend McAllister’s , meaning he will remain on the job from Jan. 1, 2012 to Dec. 31, 2012. This means he will serve a third calendar year in charge of finances for both the municipal and the school governments.
Often credited for turning the school district’s potential $2 million deficit into a surplus, McAllister is paid $89,000 a year for his role as controller. But as business manager — a job that officials have said could normally pay $80,000 — McAllister earned a $15,000 each year for the past two years.
Board member Glenn Connan made a motion seeking a $5,000 increase to McAllister’s stipend, saying it was warranted as a simple pay hike for all the work the controller does in his dual role.
“Here we have somebody who is saving us a tremendous amount of money, and in no way have we really said thank you monetarily,” Connan said.
Board member James Jordan and Mayor Robert Mezzo, while neither of them opposed giving McAllister a pay increase, indicated they would prefer to see what the impacts would be on the budget.
“Maybe Wayne’s taught me too well… I have some issues, as Jim has mentioned, not having it vetted through the proper channels,” Mezzo said. “You can’t argue with giving the man an increase. His work ethic and results that he’s achieved are incredible for us. But more importantly there is a process, particularly when you are talking inter-budget numbers.”
Eventually the board voted in favor of the increase.
