Voted out! What does Zofingen's mayor Guyer expect now?

Voted out! What does Zofingen's mayor Guyer expect now?

Christiane Guyer, who has been a member of the Zofingen city council since 2010 and has held the office of city president since 2022, was voted out. Now the question arises as to what financial benefits she is entitled to after she leaves. The city of Zofingen is required to make a decision about possible severance pay or a pension. The regulations for this are anchored in the regulations on the insurance of the members of the city council and the pension of the city mayor, which were established on December 11, 1989 and last updated on January 1, 2012.

According to the provisions of the regulations, a mayor who is not re-elected receives a one-off lump sum payment of 30% of the gross annual salary for the last year in office in his first year in office. For each additional year of office, this severance payment increases by 10%, with the maximum amount after the eighth year of office being 100% of the annual gross salary. With a four-year term of office, Guyer is entitled to a severance payment of 60% of his annual gross salary.

Pension regulations

A pension, on the other hand, is only granted if the mayor has been in office for more than eight years and has reached the age of 50. This pension amounts to 42% of the annual gross salary from the age of 50 and increases to 50% from the age of 55. If a mayor resigns before reaching the age of 50 and after more than eight years in office, he is still entitled to a pension of 40% of his annual gross salary for a period of five years. The city has the right to reduce these benefits if the outgoing mayor has an income that exceeds the pension, and he must declare his income to the city.

The city of Zofingen is currently not paying out pensions because all previous city presidents have reached retirement age. This raises the question of whether and when Guyer will receive these benefits, particularly in view of her deselection.

Political guidelines and composition of the city council

As mayor, Christiane Guyer was not only responsible for presidential business; she was part of a city council made up of different parties. Other members include Peter Siegrist (independent), Andreas Rüegger (FDP), Dominik Gresch (glp), Robert Weishaupt (Die Mitte), Lukas Fankhauser (SP), and Rahela Syed (SP). These city councilors work in different departments and contribute to political decision-making in Zofingen, but the city council will need a new leader in the future.

How these changes will affect the political environment in Zofingen remains to be seen as the city sorts out the legal and financial aspects surrounding Guyer's deselection. Political actors and citizens are showing keen interest in the developments and decisions that will be made in the coming weeks.

For more information about the city council members and their positions, you can visit the official website of the city of Zofingen: zofingen.ch. Details about Christiane Guyer's severance pay and pension can also be found in the article by Oltenertagblatt.