By Angela Hill

Group rethinks volunteering efforts after raise

May 12, 2011 | 6:21 AM

A local service group is expressing their frustration with the raise recently approved for the Prince Albert Parkland Health Region CEO.

“The Elks and the Royal Purple Dialysis committee worked for almost 25 years to raise this amount of money, that has been required to ensure that equipment is in place and replacement machines are funded,” said Nick Trofimuk, chairman of the Elks and Royal Purple.

A letter was sent from the organization to the health region explaining that the group feels that it’s hard to justify the volunteer efforts when the CEO receives a raise worth more than five years of fundraising efforts.

“But the principal of the thing is … The point we’re trying to make is, we are not happy with an individual getting a 60 per cent raise. That’s the issue,” Trofimuk said.

He said that he understands people need to be compensated fairly, but believes the raise should have been spread out over a variety of years to have a less dramatic impact on the appearance of the operation of the health region.

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To this end, the Trofimuk said the Elks may find it difficult to continue to support the dialysis unit past October 2011, after their annual general meeting.

A letter was sent from the health region back to the Elks to explain the raise.

“The raise that was given was given to the position and we were as a health region, the fifth step in a long process initiated by SAHO, who hired the Hay Group to do a study across Canada to see how they were paying CEO across the province,” said Gord Dobrowolsky, health board chair.

“As a board, we approved a salary with in the recommended range.

“This is not the boards doing in itself — it was one step in a very long process.”

Trofimuk said he hoped for more.

“The bottom line is, there is not a mention at all about the letter that we wrote, the fact that a bunch of volunteers raised that much money for the dialysis, not a mention at all, whatsoever,” he said.

He said he’ll recommend the Elks and Royal Purple find another organization to support at their next meeting.

Dobrowolsky said he hopes it doesn’t come to them ending their support for the hospital.

“The health region acknowledges the year of volunteer service the Royal Purple and the Elks in the dialysis unit. Their volunteerism of time and money that they raise is crucial in the proper operation of that unit,” he said.

As a member of the Elks himself, Dobrowolsky said he knows a number of people involved in the organization and is working to contact Trofimuk.

“I’ll reach him and I’ll offer to have meeting with him and with the group and quite frankly (I) look forward to it,” he said.

See related:

Health region CEO receives raise
Health Region CEO salary compared
Salary discussion heats up

ahill@panow.com