$484,000 for a state trooper...really!!!!! (Fresno, Monterey: insurance, mortgage, credit card)

[harhar]

Originally Posted by Fontucky

My CHP cousin, who works out of the Fresno office at a resident post, is at ~110k per year. He takes his patrol car home and is subject to being rolled out of bed at any hour or in the middle of family activities.

The above won't ever be splashed across the Charlotte Observer because it's, well, typical and boring.

Exactly.

I work at a school district, I tell people what I do and how much I make, and they either say, "that's about right," or "you should be getting more."

People are jealous of my benefits however, but those too are being slowly eroded away.

But it's not the salaries we should be worried about; police, teachers and other state employees should keep making what they make.

What we need to address are the ineffective workers in the system and reform, retirement and health benefits for future workers.

[DMenscha]

Originally Posted by Fontucky

My first CDF Captain made 1200 a month in 1973. According to my handy dandy CPI Inflation Calculator, that's $6,251.81 per month in 2012 dollars. Y'know, back in the "good old days."

Where's the outrage?

I made $1079 a month as an Fire Apparatus Engineer in 1977.

[Fontucky]

2012 dollars = $4,118.66

Current: Pay Code 1077: 3325.00 - 3849.00

[Curmudgeon]

And for those munificent amounts we received the added privilege of risking our lives for the sake of others.

[Fontucky]

Cue user_id and his "firefighters don't have a risky job and are overpaid" posts.

[stumble]

Base pay is not the issue in most places it is the total cost to the taxpayers. Overtime, pension, healthcare $$ are all factors which inflate the total cost. Per an earlier post, it is very likely the average "pay code 1077" employee cost the taxpayer substantially more than 40K a year.

[1200RT]

Originally Posted by Fontucky

Cue user_id and his "firefighters don't have a risky job and are overpaid" posts.

That sounds fun, haven't had one of those in awhile.

[Fontucky]

Originally Posted by stumble

Base pay is not the issue in most places it is the total cost to the taxpayers. Overtime, pension, healthcare $$ are all factors which inflate the total cost. Per an earlier post, it is very likely the average "pay code 1077" employee cost the taxpayer substantially more than 40K a year.

That applied back in 1973 and 1977 as well.

[Phil306]

I've posted this before:

I'm a police officer in California. Specifically, the SF Bay Area. I have been for 24 yrs. I am a Police Officer. Not a Sergeant, Lieutenant, etc. My base pay is $99,500.00 a year. Throw in my incentive pay, I get 5% more for having an Intermediate and Advanced POST Certificate (issues of training, experience, and college education come into play for this), plus I get another 2.5% for longevity pay (working more then 10 years for the city I work for). I have no clue what the "math" for these incentives are.

However, understand my job comes with overtime. There are many times shifts go unfilled due to vacations, sick calls, training, etc and I do work overtime. In fact, I work ALOT of overtime. Because of this, one year, I made more money then the city manager and it was splashed all over the front page of our local newspaper.

HOWEVER, what MOST people didn't see and I received the backlash for, was the fact: I was working 6 days a week, 12 hour shifts. One period I worked 44 days in a row. Yes, I made just about 200K that one year (I've never done it since), but as others have said: You, nor others who report this junk, seem to realize the sacrifice I made for it. And before anyone says it: Had I not done it, someone else would have. See, in the area of public safety, you HAVE To have so many firefighters, so many police officers, so many paramedics, etc on duty at one time. The unfortunate price of this day and age is: Public Safety is EXPENSIVE. You are going to pay for it, one way or the other.

[Gemdiver]

Originally Posted by Phil306

I've posted this before:

I'm a police officer in California. Specifically, the SF Bay Area. I have been for 24 yrs. I am a Police Officer. Not a Sergeant, Lieutenant, etc. My base pay is $99,500.00 a year. Throw in my incentive pay, I get 5% more for having an Intermediate and Advanced POST Certificate (issues of training, experience, and college education come into play for this), plus I get another 2.5% for longevity pay (working more then 10 years for the city I work for). I have no clue what the "math" for these incentives are.

However, understand my job comes with overtime. There are many times shifts go unfilled due to vacations, sick calls, training, etc and I do work overtime. In fact, I work ALOT of overtime. Because of this, one year, I made more money then the city manager and it was splashed all over the front page of our local newspaper.

HOWEVER, what MOST people didn't see and I received the backlash for, was the fact: I was working 6 days a week, 12 hour shifts. One period I worked 44 days in a row. Yes, I made just about 200K that one year (I've never done it since), but as others have said: You, nor others who report this junk, seem to realize the sacrifice I made for it. And before anyone says it: Had I not done it, someone else would have. See, in the area of public safety, you HAVE To have so many firefighters, so many police officers, so many paramedics, etc on duty at one time. The unfortunate price of this day and age is: Public Safety is EXPENSIVE. You are going to pay for it, one way or the other.

Was it mandatory or voluntary OT?