The income of Christchurch City Council’s chief executive has just become sweeter, as the council announced a 3 per cent rise in her base salary.

Dawn Baxendale, chief executive since 2019, will now take home $548,548 a year - confirmed after her latest performance review.

The publicly funded income includes her base salary and superannuation, which the council said is in keeping with the remuneration pool for staff.

Around this time last year, Baxendale’s salary jumped by $18,000 from $495,000 a year. The mayor at the time said Baxendale had done “an excellent job in extremely challenging circumstances”.

Christchurch mayor Phil Mauger called Baxendale “an asset to the council”. Photo / Christchurch City Council

Baxendale had voluntarily taken a $50,000 pay cut in 2020, as she recognised the challenges people were facing because of Covid-19.

Following her latest pay increase, mayor Phil Mauger said Baxendale’s performance had been admirable in spite of challenges faced by the organisation and city over the last year.

Mauger, who chairs the Chief Executive Performance and Employment Committee, called Baxendale “an asset to the council”.

“We know everyone has had a tough year, so we want to acknowledge her hard work,” he said.