The Metro board is expected to vote Thursday to extend General Manager Paul J. Wiedefeld’s contract by two years and raise his salary more than 9 percent, a sign of confidence in the executive who took over the agency during the height of its safety crisis in 2015.
The measure would extend Wiedefeld’s contract — originally set to expire in November 2019 — through November 2021, and increase his compensation 9.43 percent to $435,000 from $397,500. It would be Wiedefeld’s first pay increase since his arrival; he has eschewed raises and bonuses in his three years at Metro, despite being eligible for annual performance bonuses.
Under the new terms, Wiedefeld would be eligible for annual salary increases of 5 percent to 10 percent based on performance. The contract would renew automatically on a yearly basis unless it were terminated by Wiedefeld or the board, and the term of Wiedefeld’s severance agreement would extend from 12 to 24 months is he were fired without cause.