Excessive Salaries of a Few Public Servants

It’s comforting to see that it’s not just public “servants” back home who are overpaid, it happens in Costa Rica too…

A recent report from the Comptroller General of the Republic of Costa Rica (Contraloría General de la República) revealed the huge differences in the salaries of Mayors in the various parts of the country.

As one would expect, the mayor of the capital city of San José who has the most responsibilities and manages the largest budget earns the most, the mayor Johnny Araya six million colones per month which is US$12,121 per month.

The one salary that appears to glaringly out of proportion with the responsibilities involved is the second highest paid Mayor in Costa Rica…

The Mayor of Límon – Néstor Mattis – earns a magnificent 4.1 million colones per month (**) which is US$8,282 yet, manages a budget which is 13 times less than the Mayor of San José and a smaller budget than the Mayors of Escazú, Santa Cruz, Belén, Tibás, Heredia, Desamparados, Grecia, Santa Ana and San Carlos – all of whom earn less for what one would think would be a lot more work…

Most of the Mayors of the larger municipalities in Costa Rica are only paid about $6,000 per month so these numbers may not look out of proportion compared to the salaries of some top California officials however, we should bear in mind that average salaries in Costa Rica are significantly lower than they are in the USA.

When reading these stories about public “servants” anywhere, it’s difficult not to ask who exactly is serving who?

Written by Scott Oliver, author of 1. Costa Rica Real Estate Scams & How To Avoid Them, 2. How To Buy Costa Rica Real Estate Without Losing Your Camisa, and 3. Costa Rica’s Guide To Making Money Offshore.

** You can always see the current rate of exchange (Tipo de Cambio) at the Banco Central de Costa Rica website here. In this article we are using Colones495:US$1

You can also read a related La Nacion article (in Spanish) here.

Andrew Makarik

to@welovecostarica.com

Andrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.