New firefighters haven't stemmed overtime

Posted 11/20/14

To the Editor:

For the past several years during the budget hearings, a small group of tenacious residents listened again and again as the Warwick Fire Department attempted to justify its cost …

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New firefighters haven't stemmed overtime

Posted

To the Editor:

For the past several years during the budget hearings, a small group of tenacious residents listened again and again as the Warwick Fire Department attempted to justify its cost escalations, particularly in the line item of overtime. The residents were told in 2012 that due to a $3.1 million federal grant a new firefighter school would be held and that approximately 20 new positions would be created on the department. The testimony from the chief, from the mayor and from the chief of staff indicated that the overtime would be dramatically reduced, if not eliminated, when the new hires were put on the job.

Several residents and council members questioned that in view of the fact that the $3.1 million grant was funding for the positions for two years only, where would this money come from in the future to pay these salaries and benefits? Would it come from the virtual taxpayer credit card swipe, or was there a plan in effect. As put forth so eloquently by the management team, the additional personnel would pay for themselves by the elimination of overtime, hence the funds being paid at the time would no longer be necessary as the city would have a full complement of firefighters.

How accurate was that testimony is the question? In the last few months, the same group of residents put forth a public records request to see exactly how much the new compliment of 20-plus firefighters has reduced the overtime. After weeks passing with no answers and no documents, we were told that we needed to pay $150 for the information that was requested, as it was such a monumental undertaking for the department. 

Was that really true? Is it possible that these roadblocks were purposely put in place in an attempt to stop this two-page $150 document from being made public? You may be astonished by the numbers.

It seems that in Warwick we still have a lingering problem of abusive overtime as the document reveals that the WFD consumed 39,412.5 hours. Yes, you read this correctly. Say it out loud so you can understand it. Thirty-nine thousand four hundred 12 point five hours of overtime. Unfortunately, the document does not divulge the total dollar amount (we gladly would have paid another $75 for that page). Where are the savings? What I do find interesting is that number (39,412) happens to be just about the exact amount of hours required to fund 19 employees 40 hours a week for one year. 

This problem continues and has been an ever-present issue as the Warwick Beacon article of 2006 describes, and there seems to be no end in sight. I believe that the residents deserve the breakdown for the past year, as was the case in the attached article.

Any resident that would like a copy of the documents can obtain them by contacting me at cartaxrevolt@aol.com.

Rob Cote 

Warwick

Comments

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  • Straightnnarrow

    Good for you, Mr Cote. Another example of tax-payers getting ripped off by their elected officials to protect their friends- Plain disgusting and just who is going to fix this? And why should anyone vote for any of these crooks that should be in jail? Why is the Warwick Beacon not ferreting out the truth behind this obscenity?

    Thursday, November 20, 2014 Report this

  • Unionthug

    Anyone needing a copy please contact

    Rob "The Greatest Fiscal Overseaer Ever" Cote

    C/o Car Tax revolt

    Any large bush where I can take pictures of real men.

    Warwick RI, 02886

    Thursday, November 20, 2014 Report this

  • Thecaptain

    Overtime eating into fire budget

    By MARK SILBERSTEIN

    With at least nine months left to go in the 2005-06 fiscal year ending June 30 the Warwick Fire Department has spent $463,932.94 on overtime from one of two accounts, or 66.3-percent of the $700,000 budget. In another account, firefighter overtime has drained $244,964.39, or 46.7 percent of $525,000 budgeted.

    Based on figures supplied by City Treasurer David Olsen, the amounts reflect two separate overtime accounts in the Fire Department budget — one known as Fire I (employees that were hired prior to 1992), and Fire II (employees hired since 1992).

    Overtime remains a serious issue for the department to address, their senior leadership attempting to hire and train recruits to fill open slots created by retirees as fast as veteran firefighters are leaving.

    According to city Personnel Director Oscar Shelton there are 218 positions budgeted for in the fire department's current fiscal year budget.

    Since July 1, eight firefighters have retired, four of those with 30 years on the job, now receiving 80-percent of their annual income once they left work thanks to a pension reimbursement deal Mayor Scott Avedisian penned with the union after reaching a tentative 3-year contract agreement in February. The City Council last week moved forward with a threat to sue the administration in court, seeking a temporary restraining order to keep Avedisian from allowing the 80-percent reimbursement to continue. The reason, argued the 8-to-1 majority in favor of the court action, is that the mayor had not submitted the obligatory ordinance requiring a city council vote before increasing the pension payment although prior administrations had also failed to gain council approval before a contract agreement.

    Next month, 14 members of the department's 2005 recruit class are expected to graduate from the latest training academy, and whether or not all of them are hired rests with a decision from Avedisian.

    In the 2004-05 fiscal year, the Fire Department had $600,000 in the Fire I overtime account, $100,000 less than this year, yet they spent $1,325,086.27 — 120.8-percent over their available funding, more than double what had been budgeted. And the Fire II overtime account had $400,000, $125,000 less than this year, but the department paid out $580,268.12 in expenses — 45.1-percent more than what was budgeted.

    "It doesn't come as a surprise to me," reacted City Council President Donald Torres (D-Ward 2), who voted in favor of the last two municipal budgets where the council trimmed line item funding to pay for fire department overtime.

    "It was inevitable this was going to happen," Torres said on Tuesday, explaining the council's position to cut departmental spending across city government in recent budgets, in part he said to support a consensus among his colleagues that the Republican-led administration needed to be more fiscally conservative in tough economic times, and also to reduce the rising tax burden on homeowners. But, Torres acknowledged, given current fire department union contractual obligations that require specific staffing levels be maintained at all times it's impossible for the council or any other authority to place restrictions on their overtime expenses.

    Before the council adopted the current budget earlier this summer, Torres said Fire Chief Jack Chartier originally submitted a request to the administration for $1,300,000 to cover anticipated costs in the Fire I account, and $750,000 for Fire II. Mayor Avedisian, Torres continued, didn't change Chartier's request for Fire I when the final budget package was sent to the council, but trimmed $150,000 from the line item for Fire II. When both items were reviewed by the council, Fire I was cut $600,000, and Fire II $75,000.

    In the 2004-05 fiscal year, covering a period from July 1, 2004 to June 30, 2005, the top five overtime earners for the Warwick Fire Department included the following — none of them rank and file:

    • Battalion Chief David DelVecchio, 741 hours of overtime, worth $37,937.85. DelVecchio's regular salary was $78,901.20, giving him a combined income with overtime for one year of $116,839.05.

    • Battalion Chief Edmund Armstrong, 736 hours of overtime, worth $37,633.25. Armstrong's regular salary was $79,649.86, giving him a combined income with overtime for one year of $117,283.11.

    • Battalion Chief Paul St. Jean, 616 hours of overtime, worth $31,558.22. St. Jean's regular salary was $79,649.86, giving him a combined income with overtime for one year of $111,208.08.

    • Battalion Chief Stephen Hay, 602 hours of overtime, worth $30,816.77. Hay's regular salary was $79,649.86, giving him a combined income with overtime for one year of $110,466.63, and,

    • Lt. Thomas Maymon, 721 hours of overtime, worth $30,040.98. Maymon's regular salary was $64,189.53, giving him a combined income with overtime for one year of $94,230.51.

    In the first 13 weeks of this fiscal year, spanning a period from July 1 to last Friday, Warwick Fire Department officers have already begun to rack up significant overtime, and earned extra pay as a result. They include:

    • Rescue Capt. Joseph Pfeifer, 262 hours of overtime, worth $12,099.96. Pfeifer's regular salary is $71,696.56.

    • Capt. David Morse, 254 hours of overtime, worth $11,622.99. Morse's regular salary is $72,376.72.

    • Lt. James Kenney, 250 hours of overtime, worth $10,653.18. Kenney's regular salary is $66,653.18.

    • Lt. Michael Clark, 250.5 hours of overtime, worth $10,782.69. Clark's regular salary is $65,175.24.

    • Capt. Steven Bonn, 244 hours of overtime, worth $11,256. Bonn's regular salary is $72,376.72.

    None of the calculations take into account the cost of city-paid medical and dental coverage, less applicable employee contributions based on the current, if only tentative union contract agreement.

    While Torres suggested it is a simple practice of good management to control overtime in non-emergency situations, he added that command staff at the fire department has little choice when personnel are sick or injured to find necessary replacements, charged with the task of preserving public safety.

    Still, Torres expressed continued frustration that year after year the department's overtime expenses ballooned past budgeted amounts, noting that towards the end of the fiscal period the administration would utilize a common practice of transferring funds from one account to another or from one department to another to make the ledgers balance.

    Chief Chartier did not return a phone call from the Beacon seeking comment on the matter.

    "There is an amount budgeted for overtime," Avedisian said in a statement, "there is no other money available for this use and I have no magical pot of money waiting to cover such costs."

    Friday, November 21, 2014 Report this

  • Unionthug

    DEM ARRESTS WARWICK MAN FOR ILLEGAL DISPOSAL OF GASOLINE IN SEPTIC SYSTEM

    PROVIDENCE: A Warwick man was arrested today for allegedly disposing of gasoline by pouring it down the drain at his business. Robert Cote, 39, of 12 Social Drive in Warwick, was arrested by DEM Officers at his place of business and arraigned before Judge Walter Gorman in 6th Division District Court in Warwick. He was charged with a single count of unlawfully disposing of hazardous waste. Cote entered no plea, as typically occurs in felony cases. He was released on $5,000 personal recognizance and faces an arraignment in Superior Court on August 14. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in jail and/or a $5,000 fine. The RI Attorney General's Office will be prosecuting the case.

    According to Sr. Agent Giusto Iannelli, of DEM's Office of Criminal Investigation, the Warwick Fire Department was called to Cote's business, the Pro Divers Shop at 2442 West Shore Road, on April 30 after a neighbor in an adjacent strip mall heard an explosion and observed smoke coming from the dive shop. The fire department responded and extinguished the fire, but an officer at the scene noticed a heavy smell of gasoline coming from the facility. Cote admitted to placing a container with less than a gallon of gasoline in a sink to see if the gasoline was contaminated. Cote claimed that the fumes from the gasoline were ignited by a spark from a hot water heater.

    The fire officer at the scene called DEM to determine if there was a remaining hazard. John Leo, a Sanitary Engineer with DEM's Emergency Response Unit, responded and found that a considerable amount of gasoline was present in the septic system. Leo determined that the situation constituted a threat to public safety and the environment, and he immediately called CYN Environmental to come to pump out the septic system.

    Subsequent lab tests indicated that there was at least 20 and perhaps as much as 30 gallons of gasoline in the septic system, enough to pose a significant danger of a major explosion. Leo noted that if the fumes had backed up overnight in the pipes and vents associated with the septic system, the result could have been disastrous.

    In addition to today's arrest, DEM officers, assisted by officers from the Warwick Police Department, executed a search warrant and removed evidence from the scene.

    Friday, November 21, 2014 Report this

  • Unionthug

    I think Rob had his toy fire truck stolen from him in the sand box when he was a kid. Still hasn't gotten over it.

    Friday, November 21, 2014 Report this

  • Thecaptain

    Again SteveD the spin doctor shows his lack of intelligence and personal attacks.

    WARWICK BEACON, Thursday, December 17, 1998 Pg. 13

    Cote cleared in gas-dumping charge

    Robert Cote, the owner of Pro-divers, Inc. on 2442 West Shore Rd., has been cleared of charges that he dumped 30 gallons of gasoline into his septic tank.

    A statewide grand jury ruled that there wasn’t enough evidence to charge Cote for the alleged crime. On April 30 this year, a fire started in a sink at the shop. Cote said he was outside tying to get a small boat to start and he suspected that there was water in the gasoline. Cote said he took a small container of the fuel into his shop to investigate, and upon walking in saw that he had a customer. He placed the container in a sink near a hot water tank.

    Cote said the tank has a pilot light, and that must have been what ignited the fuel in the sink. Cote said he and two customers were able to put the fire out.

    “We put the fire out. It took about 30 seconds”, Cote stated.

    Then the fire department arrived. An inspector said he smelled gasoline, and the Department of Environmental Management was called in.

    “The only damage that occurred was when the DEM came in with a Sawzall,” Cote said. The DEM ripped out the pipes that they thought could be used as evidence against Cote to prove he had dumped up to 30 gallons of gasoline down his drain.

    Cote noted that the boat he was working on could not carry 30 gallons of gasoline, and also that 30 gallons of gasoline would weigh about 260 pounds – more weight than he could easily carry back to his shop.

    Friday, November 21, 2014 Report this

  • Reality

    Thanks Rob for all your hard work. You are right on with your analysis. Year after year the fire chief tells us the new firemen will eliminate overtime but yet it never happens. What happens when the Obama's stimulus money dries up. How will the city fund these new employees ?

    Ignore Steve D......he adds nothing to the discussion.

    Friday, November 21, 2014 Report this

  • Thecaptain

    Thank you sir,

    It is not about personal issues, it is simply about stating facts, quoting documents that are public, and stimulating thought to find other ways of efficiency. No private industry could survive the way Warwick operates.

    Friday, November 21, 2014 Report this

  • allent

    public sector unions will soon be a thing of the past when the Supreme Court neuters them once and for all in 2016.

    Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association

    Saturday, November 22, 2014 Report this

  • Pmaloneyjr

    If I had been elected to the Warwick City council, I would have requested this information to be presented at the meeting for free. Our taxpayers see enough money pulled from their wallets.

    Saturday, November 22, 2014 Report this

  • falina

    I'm sorry but this demonization of the Warwick Fore Department is just vile and needs to stop. Firefighters are heroes. They save lives. You are truly disgusting!

    Tuesday, November 25, 2014 Report this

  • kevinc

    Heroes!!! please, give me a brake. they do it because they make a hell of a living for it.. A hero does something heroic w/out expecting anything in return.. keep it up cote.

    Tuesday, November 25, 2014 Report this

  • fenceman

    It's not about demonization, its about when a public official makes a statement that overtime will be eliminated when we hire these 20 men, and the overtime is not eliminated. The public official should be held accountable FISCALLY, as well as the administration should be able to disseminate the costs over-runs, and be accountable to the people paying the bill. Just that simple.

    Tuesday, November 25, 2014 Report this

  • JustBecause

    I agree, Firefighters are good at what they do but they do it for the money. $55,000 quickly become $110,000 with overtime. Who is kidding who.

    They collaborate against taxpayers via unified votes or "union" voting because an extra $100 per month from property taxes means $25,000 per year FOR THEM.

    Anyone able to listen in during an "Off the record" conversation of union people you quickly hear an us vs them mentality.

    And the stonewalling is another trait from a union supporting City Council.

    Ordinary taxpayers are considered the psuedo "underclass".

    City Council members need to remove (D) and (R) and replace them with (U) and (T) to know who represents us and who doesn't.

    Thursday, November 27, 2014 Report this

  • Unionthug

    I'd like to see your list of how many people made $55,000 in OT last year... Zero maybe!!!!!!!

    Thursday, November 27, 2014 Report this