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Police, fire staff are Mesa’s top wage earners
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More than 60 percent of Mesa’s highest-paid employees are in the police and fire departments, some landing there because of overtime. Among the top 100 salaries, 32 police and 29 fire department employees earned more than $100,000 each in 2007.
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Police Sgt. Michael Collins, for example, made just under $150,000 and ranked ninth. The base salary for a police sergeant ranges from $77,750 to $85,925.
City Manager Chris Brady was Mesa’s highest paid employee in 2007, at $194,000. Assistant city manager Debra Dollar made $177,500, and Police Chief George Gascón came in third at about $173,000.
City spokesman Steve Wright said Mesa raised salaries for many positions last year to stay competitive with neighboring cities, especially Phoenix, Glendale, Scottsdale, Chandler and Tempe.
“There were also adjustments made to public safety positions to better position the city’s police and fire departments in hiring qualified candidates to fill vacancies in their respective areas,” Wright stated.
Assistant police chief John Meza said the department is changing its staffing strategy to make better use of manpower and cut overtime.
“In balancing our budget, we put a strong emphasis on reducing overtime,” Meza said. “It’s the most significant area we have to cover.”
Paying overtime is a big concern for outgoing Mayor Keno Hawker. But he said Gascón has been working on reducing overtime and filling positions.
“Sometimes, it’s better to bring in officers than getting people used to doing overtime,” Hawker said, adding that retirement benefits also are compounded by higher salary levels.
Hawker noted the nature of public safety means that emergency situations, and, therefore, overtime, cannot be completely avoided.
“It’s not something that will be eliminated, but we have to make sure people are not using overtime as part of their weekly wages,” Hawker said.
“That’s the issue they’re dealing with.”
In 2008-09, the police department aims to reduce $800,000 in overtime costs. The overtime budget for its 857 sworn officers remains the same as last year at $3.8 million.
In the city’s fire department, Chief Harry Beck is the highest paid at $144,000, followed by four of his captains.
At a budget meeting earlier this year, Beck told the City Council that Mesa needs at least four more fire stations and 52 additional firefighters to maintain current service levels.
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