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Concern Raised About Nevada County's Firefighter Pay
LAS VEGAS - Overtime and other benefits left dozens of Clark County firefighters earning over $200,000 apiece last year.
Twenty-two of the firefighters made more than the county manager,Virginia Valentine.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal, examining payroll records, found that even as the county struggled with a tightening budget in a slumping economy, it shelled out hefty salaries and severance packages to many employees, especially firefighters.
Overtime contributed to Battalion Chief Gina Geldbach Hall's grossing $278,549, making her the 12th-highest paid county employee last year. She received a base wage of about $209,000, $45,000 in overtime and $21,000 in longevity pay.
Two other firefighters who left after being disabled on the job headed the salary list.
Danny Ganier, a battalion chief, received $594,658, and Floyd Walch, a fire captain, $535,754. Each qualified for two years' pay as a disability benefit upon leaving their jobs, beefing up their earnings for the year.
In all, 32 firefighters made more than $200,000 in 2008.
"That should not be surprising," said Don Burnette, the county's chief administrative officer, for a firefighters' union that negotiates favorable contracts for its members.
A conservative think tank contends that the high wages underscore the need for the firefighters to make a substantial contract concession the way other county unions have.
"They're the lone holdouts," said Geoffrey Lawrence, researcher for the Nevada Policy Research Institute. "They're not willing to relinquish cost-of-living increases, even though the (area's) cost of living is going down."
Firefighters in Las Vegas, North Las Vegas and Henderson have lowered or postponed pay raises to ease their governments' tightening budgets. However, all three cities offer their firefighters a higher base pay than the county does.
County firefighters top out at $74,000 in base pay compared with Las Vegas at $77,600, North Las Vegas at $77,000 and Henderson at $81,500, according to the newspaper.
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Information from: Las Vegas Review-Journal, http://www.lvrj.com
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Twenty-two of the firefighters made more than the county manager,Virginia Valentine.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal, examining payroll records, found that even as the county struggled with a tightening budget in a slumping economy, it shelled out hefty salaries and severance packages to many employees, especially firefighters.
Overtime contributed to Battalion Chief Gina Geldbach Hall's grossing $278,549, making her the 12th-highest paid county employee last year. She received a base wage of about $209,000, $45,000 in overtime and $21,000 in longevity pay.
Two other firefighters who left after being disabled on the job headed the salary list.
Danny Ganier, a battalion chief, received $594,658, and Floyd Walch, a fire captain, $535,754. Each qualified for two years' pay as a disability benefit upon leaving their jobs, beefing up their earnings for the year.
In all, 32 firefighters made more than $200,000 in 2008.
"That should not be surprising," said Don Burnette, the county's chief administrative officer, for a firefighters' union that negotiates favorable contracts for its members.
A conservative think tank contends that the high wages underscore the need for the firefighters to make a substantial contract concession the way other county unions have.
"They're the lone holdouts," said Geoffrey Lawrence, researcher for the Nevada Policy Research Institute. "They're not willing to relinquish cost-of-living increases, even though the (area's) cost of living is going down."
Firefighters in Las Vegas, North Las Vegas and Henderson have lowered or postponed pay raises to ease their governments' tightening budgets. However, all three cities offer their firefighters a higher base pay than the county does.
County firefighters top out at $74,000 in base pay compared with Las Vegas at $77,600, North Las Vegas at $77,000 and Henderson at $81,500, according to the newspaper.
___
Information from: Las Vegas Review-Journal, http://www.lvrj.com
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by John Crabbe on
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Overtime and other benefits left dozens of Clark County firefighters earning over $200,000 apiece last year
And what is typically and quite conveintly left out of such articles, is what created the OT in the first place. Typically it is due to hiring freezes and staffing shortages resulting in OT. While the salaries are quite high, it also means the person pulling in that much OT spent most of their life at work.
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