The COM's personnel expenses have increased by 22 M€ over five years
A local government’s so-called operating expenses are the recurring expenses necessary for the operation of its services. They are divided into three main categories: personnel expenses, general expenses, and other expenses. We examined the trend in personnel expenses for the Collectivité de Saint-Martin, which account for nearly 40% of its operating expenses. We based our analysis on the Collectivité’s management and administrative accounts. These figures represent actual expenditures, not budgeted or projected amounts.
The Collectivité spent 64.71 million euros in 2025 on personnel expenses, which include salaries, social security contributions, pensions, allowances, etc. These expenses account for 40% of actual operating expenses. Despite a decrease compared to 2024 (-3.9%), these expenses remain significant and have never been higher.
Between 2012 and 2016, they gradually increased as the COM settled into its new status, rising from 30 to 40 million euros. Between 2017 and 2021, they continued to rise but at a slower pace, stabilizing at around 43–44 million euros.
Starting in 2022, growth accelerated: +9.75 million in 2022, +9.33 million in 2023, reaching nearly 63 million. In 2024, another increase was observed (+4.3 M€ or +6.8%), bringing personnel expenses to 67.31 million euros. Between 2020 and 2025, the total payroll increased by 52%, or more than 22.25 million euros. According to the supplemental budget approved in September, the COM has again budgeted 67.75 million for 2026.
Of the total compensation, salaries for tenured faculty members amount to 26.6 million euros, to which 5.3 million euros in allowances must be added, for a total of 31.9 million euros. Salaries alone have remained stable for the past two years; the allowances for 2025 are at the same level as those granted in 2020. However, in 2023 and 2024, the severance payments were higher (7.4 and 8.66 million euros).
Nearly 7 out of 10 compensation payments in 2024 or 2025 are for permanent employees, whereas in 2020, 9 out of 10 were.
Payments to non-tenured employees increased by 455%, rising from 2.67 million in 2020 to 14.84 million euros in 2025, an increase of 12 million euros.
The Collectivité also pays child care assistants; these expenses are also included in the “personnel expenses” section. In 2025, their compensation totaled 2.21 million euros, 2.57 million in 2024, compared to 1.76 million in 2020.
Nearly 64% of the base pay for permanent employees goes to staff assigned to “general services” (€18 million), 16% to the “education, training, and apprenticeships” division (€4.58 million), and 7.8% to the “health and social services” division (€2.21 million).
In 2025, personnel expenses (all categories combined) amounted to 2,054 euros per capita. In 2026, they are expected to rise to 2,174 euros because the total payroll will be higher, according to the supplemental budget passed in September, and the population is declining. In 2020, personnel expenses amounted to 1,201 euros per capita.
When comparing per-capita personnel expenses across French departments, those in Saint Martin are significantly higher. According to data from the Observatory of Local Public Finance and Management, in 2023 these figures were 1,208 euros in Paris, 1,112 euros in Guadeloupe, 1,035 euros in Martinique, 985 euros in Seine-Saint-Denis, and 966 euros in Hauts-de-Seine (the top 5). And 1,980 euros in Saint Martin.
See also: How the COM's operating expenses have changed since 2012
