Last year, I reviewed the way the Mennonite Church USA recommended ministerial compensation, and I was reasonably pleased because it seems more straightforward than the way Unitarian Universalists do, even under the most recent revisions. Not more remunerative necessarily, but easier for all to understand. But even the Mennonites recognized that the variances that come from geography were not well accounted-for.
These have been adjusted (though DC’s adjustment seems low, given the out-of-control housing costs) and all the data sheets are available at this site.
I ran the numbers as if I were serving a small local congregation, and while I wouldn’t be rich it did seem fair and much less awkward than compensation experiences I have had.
Even considering the allowance for housing, and even considering that many ministers do not work during the summer, I think that their compensation is too low. Meanwhile the seminaries have graduated many, who consider themselves to be UUs, according to an old study by the former the Hartford Theological Seminary. Supply and demand?
I think the highest paid Unitarian Universalist ministers make much more than the highest paid ministers according to this scale. But the lowest paid Unitarian Universalist ministers probably do much worse . . . .