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Friday, June 11, 2010 | 2:01 a.m.
Rory Reid
Steve Sisolak
Randall Walker
Sun archives
- New plan to curtail Clark County firefighter overtime (6-5-2010)
- Staffing shuffle would cut county Fire Department overtime (5-20-2010)
- Las Vegas, Clark County collaborate to limit firefighter overtime (4-27-2010)
- Fire union resists move to increase its ranks, reduce overtime costs (4-16-2010)
- Has fire union support become a campaign curse? (4-15-2010)
- ‘Boot drive’ OT for individual firefighters is unknown (4-4-2010)
- Practice of on-duty firefighters raising money for charity questioned (3-31-2010)
- Fire union goal: Silence Sisolak (3-19-2010)
- Las Vegas firefighters burn up more sick time than other city employees (3-14-2010)
- Clark County firefighters profit from sick leave policy (3-7-2010)
- ‘Longevity pay’ costs millions in county (12-10-2009)
- Firefighters feeling budget backlash (5-28-2009)
- County, fire union break ice with heated words (5-7-2009)
- Firefighters have perks to give back, if they wanted to (4-29-2009)
Emboldened by the Clark County Commission’s support for cutting Fire Department costs, county staff is considering a plan that would essentially privatize the firefighting force at McCarran International Airport.
Other big-city airports across the nation, including Minneapolis-St. Paul, Reno-Tahoe, Sea-Tac (Seattle-Tacoma) and Indianapolis, maintain independent fire departments, or fire authorities, with salary and benefits that are separate from the fire departments in surrounding jurisdictions.
An authority at McCarran would place the small department into the hands of Aviation Director Randall Walker. Those firefighters could unionize, then negotiate with Walker for salary and benefits, but they would not be part of the existing county firefighters union.
The county’s savings would come from transfer of 33 airport fire employees to a growing pool of firefighters who substitute for vacationing or sick colleagues at regular pay rates. Currently, absent firefighters are often replaced by an employee working overtime.
In fiscal 2009, the Fire Department paid about 700 fire personnel $14.1 million in overtime.
On the airport’s side, savings might be found in Walker’s negotiations with the new union. The airport, which is self-funded, reimburses the county for all costs associated with McCarran firefighters.
Rory Reid, chairman of the County Commission and the Democratic nominee for governor, said he wants to study the idea.
“We ought to do whatever we can to reduce personnel costs and rein in overtime, and if this helps do that we ought to take a look at it,” he said. “And if the firefighters union objects, then once again we’ll understand that they’re not as concerned with the public interest as they say they are.”
Walker said it’s an idea he is willing to explore if county commissioners are interested.
“It’s one of those things where the devil’s in the details,” he said. “I know it will work, because it works in other airports. There would have to be a lot more investigation and research.”
Fire union President Ryan Beaman said by e-mail that his union “is prepared to negotiate with the county for the new employees.” That assumes his union would represent the independent fire department.
The airport fire employees are among the Fire Department’s most senior and highest-paid employees. Across all ranks, airport firefighters’ average pay and benefits are $146,578. Insurance and retirement benefits add another $51,768 on average, bringing their total average compensation to $198,346. Throughout the Fire Department, average total firefighter compensation, all ranks, is $180,000.
When you add equipment and other expenses, fire coverage cost McCarran $7.8 million in 2009.
The airport fire team responds to a relatively small share of the 120,000 calls the department handled in 2009.
The department’s annual report says airport firefighters responded to 373 aircraft emergencies. On aircraft emergencies, all of the airport’s firefighters respond. Airport firefighters also respond, typically in two-man teams, to EMS calls, of which there were 2,581 in 2009, for total calls of 2,954.
Dividing the $7.8 million airport fire budget by total calls — EMS and aircraft emergencies — comes to about $2,640 per call. If all 120,000 Clark County Fire Department calls in 2009 had cost that much, the department would have needed a budget of $316 million. The department’s overall budget in 2009 was $138 million.
Another county concern with airport firefighters, as one elected official put it, is the perception that they are “gaming” the sick-leave system to collect more overtime. In fiscal year 2009, according the county’s employee salary list, overtime pay for airport firefighters averaged $35,746, 54 percent higher than the rest of the department’s overtime average of $23,150.
At the same time, according to a county payroll study, airport firefighters, all ranks, averaged 539 hours of sick leave in 2009, while the department’s other firefighters averaged 209 hours.
“Are they sitting around and figuring this stuff out together? I don’t know,” Commissioner Steve Sisolak told the Sun this year.
This week, Sisolak said he still wants an audit or investigation of the department’s sick-leave numbers, but only after the county and firefighters union have finished contract negotiations.
Meanwhile, Sisolak likes the idea of studying an airport fire department.
“It’s incumbent upon us to look at every possible way of saving money, and privatizing and freeing up those individuals to serve in relief and cutting more overtime is a great idea,” he added. “And it would save money for the airport so it doesn’t have to raise fees for the airlines that are so important to our economy.”
Not every commissioner agrees. Tom Collins is firmly against the idea.
“At a time when we’re trying to consolidate as much as we can, creating another department or authority is not the way to go,” Collins said. “I like the department just the way it is.”
Ryan Beaman, your time has come..... mighty kind of you to be willing to drive the newly created Airport Fire Union into the ground with the same savvy tactics and missteps you have used with your County brothers.
I would say, "thanks but no thanks"
the average airport firemen makes 198K...
that's disgusting...
absolutely disgusting...
that will destroy a community...
that must not stand...
first...
somebody needs to be fired...
i suggest we start with firing those commissioners that support the fire union...
never vote for chris giunchigliani again...
never vote for tom collins again...
can you believe ole tommy collins "like[s] the department just the way it is"...
second...
i suggest we pursue criminal charges against any fireman found to be abusing the overtime system...
third...
this broken system needs major surgery...
negotiations must start from ground zero...
these little cosmetic procedures are not going to solve the problem...
As quoted from the article:
"The airport, which is self-funded, reimburses the county for all costs associated with McCarran firefighters"
Basically, the savings will be by shifting the personnel from inside the fence to outside the fence and fill vacancies at fire stations.
Great idea...let's see if Reid and the rest of the commissioners have the intestinal fortitude to do it in an election year, or if it is just talk. I am considering voting for Reid for governor, but if he can't even reign in this huge problem with the fire union, then how can we trust that he will provide the fiscal leadership our State needs to turn around.
WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON AT MCCARRAN AIRPORT??? THE COMMISSIONERS O.K. THE PAY FOR THE AIRPORT FIREMAN TO GET.. THE AIRPORT FIREMAN GET PAID $198,000 A YEAR FROM THE TAXPAYERS??? TIME TO VOTE ALL THE COMMISSIONERS OUT !!!THE WELL IS DRY !!!
Get it done.
Wow! Now we want to create another department with another layer of administration. They will need a new department head, plus a new payroll department, plus people to train the new employees. That's extra staff the county does not need! I thought we voted for these clowns to manage the county. Instead, we have Sisolack! He needs to come clean about how much money he made suing the county. Now we are going to fire people we don't pay for! What!?! This makes no sense. In one part of the article, the county admits the fees pay for the airport firefighters. Is that correct? If it is, then I'm not paying for those individuals. Let's leave this issue alone and impeach Sisolack. He is a press-hound. All he wants is his name in the paper.
Oh, is Rory running for office?
Bet Sisolak is going to run for another office here soon also..
So the "new" airport fire department will be free or not staffed the same as our current airport staffing levels?
How much does Randy Walker make?
Birdieman has a shot to be a fireman for $18.00 an hour!!!!
The airport is enterprise funded, it doesn't really come from the taxpayers.
I don't know that transferring enterprise funded employees into the general pool makes any sense for the county. Though it sounds good for the airport.
"Wow! Now we want to create another department with another layer of administration. They will need a new department head, plus a new payroll department, plus people to train the new employees."
-------------------------------------------------
not really. They already have a "department head" and always have because they run so differently. The payroll comes out hte the Airport Authority who already have their own payroll dept so no addition there and they also already have their own separate training because an airport is very different with aviation, training etc. So if you are worried about the added costs of these things, forget about it. Personally, the airport should just have EMTs stationed WITHIN the airport and not out at the station by the runways and then you have what, about 1 call a day that is on aircraft for firemen? You could then reduce staff.
What exactly does Tom Collins do beyond the County Commission "job"?
He was an overpaid lineman at the power company who left to start a business as an electrical contractor working for the power company when he got elected. The trend was for the power company to "outsource" underground installation and he used his IBEW card and "elected" status to get work.
But now there is no new construction, so what is this "Collins" parasite doing for a living....
That's right he is a lobbyist for a rancher....LOL!
I don't know that transferring enterprise funded employees into the general pool makes any sense for the county.
---------------------------------------
You have it backwards. Those firemen are currently not enterprise funded. They are funded like the rest of the County firefighters because they are a Clark County Fire Station located at the airport. So the County would not be absorbing a new cost. The airport would then get a fire department that would then be enterprise funded.
Right, but the article states:
"The airport, which is self-funded, reimburses the county for all costs associated with McCarran firefighters."
If the airport privatizes the county loses that reimbursement effectively putting the burden of the 33 firefighters onto the county.
Dhvincent1, I do understand conceptually how that is supposed to work but in the end I suspect that equation won't balance itself out the way some think it should.
I am all for this idea. The fact that Collins is against it must mean it is good.
It makes sense, and we need to make sure when this new staff does unionize, we make sure the new contract is negotiated from scratch, and not get ourselves into the mess it has become.
YES! I am for it 100% Eventually we can rid of all the firefighter scum that steal our money and sit around and do nothing.
$200,00 a year to work 10 days a month and retire at 50 and collect a check for life must end.
Go clark county!
whomever is running against chris giunchigliani...
here's your slogan...
feel free to use it...
"vote for me, i just don't think firemen should make 180k a year"...
you win...
got that pal...
you're welcome...
now...
remember this...
birdie is a proud bleeding heart liberal democrat...
but this simply must not stand...
it will destroy the community...
go get her tiger...
whomever the hell you are!!!
Airport firefighters had 539 hours of sick leave, but the rest of the department averaged 209 hours of sick. I understand that firefighters use more sick time than the average person, due to the fact they are always around sick people, and are exposed to injuries while working on fire calls. Can you imagine wearing a ski suit, 85 pounds of gear, and working inside of a sauna. That alone would make the average person suffer from heat exhaustion. Then you add all the other dangers like of working in the dark, roof collapse, etc.. I can understand when firefighters are using 209 hours of sick leave, they are working 4360 hours a year (not including OT) compared to 1220 year 40 hour week schedule. How come they never put hour pay of a the firefighters, or how many hours the ones are working to make 150k. Look at Nick above 200k 10 days a month. Firefighters make 80k a year working 10 days a month. A captain can make 200k working 20 "24" hour shifts a year. That's 480 hours a month vs average joe 80 hours.
If a few Firefighters want to spend 20 days a month away from their family let them. They might make 200k, but they are spending a 1/3 of their life away from their families. Don't be jealous, just appreciate the fact you can sleep in the same bed is your wife every night, and you don't have to wait three days to give your kids a kiss goodnight.
How about creating the separate McCarran firefighting force without a union? Public sector unions are raising our taxes and destroying our governments. They must all be eliminated. Put in place firefighters that are paid the equivalent of others in similar circumstances through out the U.S. No more public sector unions raping us blind.
Nick,
Remember you are saving money when firefighter are working OT. It's cheaper to pay OT, then hire more firefighters, and pay benefits, and retirement. That's how all this OT got started in the first place. You see people going on news saying"I don't think it's cheaper to pay OT". This has been proven, and if it wasn't cost effective, they would hire more firefighters.
I think they should keep the McCarran firefighters, but they need to discipline the sick time abusers.
It's nice to know that if you feel sick at the airport, a team of ff's earning $200K a year will be there to take care of you. However, once you board the plane, you may be flying on a Colgan turboprop piloted by someone making $2K a month who had to get a few winks of sleep at the Tropicana before he punched in.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/...
This article says the County could save money in overtime cost, the staff believes. Will the County save money? Yes or No. I would rather pay less money on taxes, even though some firefighters might make more money. Unlike one of our commissioners who said he would rather pay 20 firefighters 100k a year than 200k a year. It cost more tax dollars to pay the 20 firefighters. If benefits are a 1/3 of the cost, than you add the retirement it cost less to pay OT. OT does not to go retirement! I know some would rather pay more money on taxes, just because they would rather see a firefighter make less money, but I want to save money. Take away jealousy and do what's best for the tax payers!
Most senior and highest paid employees and they are using almost TRIPLE the sick time of everyone else. 200 hours of sick for everyone else is pretty reasonable considering they work 24 hour shifts, and unlike those of us working desk jobs they can't work when they even so much as sprain an ankle or pull a hamstring. And being that they are active at work, they are probably pretty active outside of it, which is fine. But the old guys using nearly triple the overtime is, in the words of VegasResident aka Sisolak, outrageous. So I say do it, and send these old mooches packing to retirement or back to the real world. I'll take my chances being in a burning plane then watching the small minority suck the well dry and give the profession a bad name. No doubt in my mind a private company will give worse service, but unless the county fixes the problem at the airport this is in the best interest of all...except those who don't have integrity and dishonor the job.
20 firefighters a 100k year than 10 firefighters 200k a year.
I know a lot of firefighters are getting injured performing daily task on the fire ground, or even training. I can not say they about the Airport firefighters. Theses firefighters are abusing the system, and need to be held accountable.
Who exactly pays for the firefighters at the airport?
I know Sisolak was awarded 6.5 million, after he sued the airport. Is he still upset with the airport? This seems like it would create more problems for the airport, not really help out the tax payers.
It lawsuit cost the airport 16.6 million total.
County says we are in the hole roughly 19 million for the next year. That is a lot of money.
Rural/Metro of Scottsdale, Ariz., a private fire-fighting company, actually loses money when fires break out. This creates a profit-based incentive for the company to prevent fires while adhering to its other contractual mandates. http://www.ruralmetro.co/about_communiti...
http://www.ruralmetro.com/about_communit...
http://books.google.com/books?id=W1OOP8W...
On the flip side here is a book about communities that left Rural / Metro to form their own municipality fire department because Rural / Metro comes back every year for more money and the cities now save money by starting their own fire department.
http://transparentnevada.com/salaries/20...
Were those citys that dropped out of the RM contracts paying hundreds if not thousands of fire personnel over $200,000 and $300,000 (total pay & benefits) a year as the case in Clark County, Nevada. Can't imagine so.
No they were smaller communities that as they grew rural/ metro could no longer provide the fire service at their origi al level and they could no longerr count on the volunteers because the community grew into a major urban area and is just too demanding on the resources of volunteers and rural / metro. Let me say that yes I am a firefighter and also I used 3 days of sick leave last year. I do not make $180000 a year if I did I would not buy a s,all used pickup to drive around. There are bad apples out there. The sick leave use that is outlined in this article is bad, I am embarrassed if those numbers are true. I do not see how they can get away with that. We have sick leave abuse policies that will not allow us to do that or else it is considered abuse and we are disciplined. I am not defending these guys, I am defending the professioon. I am proud of what I do and yes we have bad apples just like any profession. I wish we could weed them out but it will never happen, let's be realistic. Some departments have already come to agreements with their cities and given up the money needed to balance the budget, good for them. Others are still working on deals or they will go to arbitration and let the chips fall.