Incensed district councillors in Northern Ireland tonight hit out a new £7,500 a year pay offer.
Representatives seeking nearly double that amount warned the British government their proposals will be rejected.
In Belfast, councillors claimed the package was so paltry it could lead to working class members quitting local politics, with one saying: "It's nothing short of pathetic."
Negotiators from the National Association of Councillors learned of the deal on the table during a meeting with Stormont Minister Angela Smith. Members have been offered a basic allowance of £7,500 (€11,400) per annum, an average increase of 21 per cent across the 26 local authorities.
But payments for attending meetings which had helped boost councillors' earnings are to be abolished.
Delegates from Belfast City Council were angered their request for an annual package of £13,000 - around a third of the normal salaries paid to Assembly members - has been ignored.
One said: "When all the members learn about this I'm sure they will see it as a kick in the teeth.
"This will almost definitely be rejected by Belfast City Council. You would look foolish to put in a bid for £13,000 and settle for just over half that."
Another councillor who refused to be named claimed unemployed representatives would be worst hit by the proposals. "Anyone on the dole who became a councillor would lose their benefits, and yet this isn't a basic working wage that will allow members to contribute full time.
"In essence it means the economic conditions could stop working class people who may aspire to be councillors."
PA