Councillor Keith Davis is set to pick up a Christmas bonus of around $20,000 this week, while Alderman Carlton Simmons can expect to take home more than $16,000.

The two men are the leading earners on the Corporation’s nine-man elected board, sitting on a number of the municipality’s committees.

Both elected officials — who have full-time jobs and volunteered for the non-paying posts when they stood for election in May 2012 — will earn $375 each for attending the Corporation’s monthly board meetings.

The meetings are held on a weekday lunchtime and typically last about an hour.

Mr Davis can earn an additional $700 per month for sitting on four committee meetings, giving him a monthly stipend of $1,075.

Mr Simmons is on three monthly committees which at $175 each, give him a total stipend of $900 per month.

The payments have been backdated 18 months to when Team Hamilton was first elected.

Mr Davis, a hospitality consultant, will be paid at least $19,350 for his duties between May 2012 and October 2013, while Mr Simmons, who runs a barber shop and youth charity, will earn $16,200.

The figures do not include payments for an unknown number of unscheduled ‘special’ board meetings that have been called in the last 18 months.

Mayor Graeme Outerbridge and Deputy Mayor Donal Smith each sit on one committee, giving them a monthly stipend of $550 and a backdated pay cheque of almost $10,000 each.

The Corporation’s five other elected members each sit on two committees and can earn $725 per month or $13,050 in backdated pay.

The stipends mean that ratepayers will be forking out a total of $120,600 in backpay to councillors up to October 2013.

It is not known if Team Hamilton members expect to get paid for future attendance at Corporation meetings.

If so, the cost to ratepayers will be around $7,000 per month.