By Greg Kamin
June 19, 2009
Last Tuesday, I went down to City Hall because I wanted to give the Supervisors some perspective on the budget. I went there because it struck me as nonsensical that the mayor could slash public health services that people desperately need, while at the same time some somehow finding more money for generous increases to the special interests closest to his heart (and presumably campaign treasury), namely Police and Fire.
Now I have nothing against police and firefighters. Their work is extremely valuable and they need to get a decent salary for that work. But just how much are we talking about? If the mayor says we need to increase police and firefighter salaries, I think we all need to know what we’re increasing those salaries from to evaluate whether or not it is fair, and whether very sick people should be left to die so they can get that increase.
The mayor and the media always mention percentages when talking about salary increases, but you rarely see what the actual numbers are. It’s those numbers that I wanted to provide, because I think most people –and even some Supervisors –simply don’t know where San Francisco stands, and how we compare to the rest of the country. And they need to know, because the answers aren’t pretty.
But before I get to that, let it be said that I went as a private citizen. While I work in the healthcare field, I don’t work for the city and I have no horse in this race. I just wanted to show support for the Supervisors trying to find an alternative to slashing our already strained public health budget. Needless to say I was a little taken aback to see the firefighters out in force, some in uniform, holding a rally across the street with mass-produced glossy signs and petitions to “save our neighborhood firehouses” –presumably all 42 that we have in this city of 46.4 square miles. I was a little surprised, though, when they didn’t line up for public comment with the hoi polloi (that would be folks like me), choosing instead to continue the media spectacle outside. Strange move, I thought, if the goal is to influence the Board.
I need not have worried, because they had a plan. While the rest of us suckers waited for an hour for the chambers to open, the firefighters waved their glossies outside for the cameras and hurled abuse at the Supervisors, only to show up promptly at 2PM chanting “Let Us In! Let Us In!” To which the only natural and appropriate response was “Get In Line! Get In Line!” And since the folks on the other side were far more muscular and seemingly not at all inclined to follow such quaint rules as waiting in line, it took a human chain in addition to the usual sheriffs deputies to enforce standard operating procedure.
Eventually I did get to speak… but the funny thing is that the numbers turn out to be so incredible that I’m not sure anyone believed me. In fact, the next day, a friend of mine who has a blog stopped me and told me, “Hey, I appreciated your testimony, but that salary figure you gave for the NYPD can’t be right.”
That’s when I knew I had to write this, because the numbers I researched came from the San Francisco City government website, and each salary figure for comparison cities came directly from their own city websites, or the websites of their Police and Fire Departments. Keep in mind that the following figures are all starting salaries – this is so that I compare apples to apples.
According to SFGOV, an entry-level SFPD officer receives a base salary of anywhere from $75,868 to $101,556, and an entry-level firefighter without paramedic training receives $70,486 -$98,670. I don’t know how they determine which entry-level candidates get the upper range of that, but keep in mind that no part of this range implies experience – this is the range for a rookie, and it only goes up from there! Furthermore, none of this includes benefits that most of us can only dream of, or overtime (which can add tens of thousands to that figure).
But wait, some would say, our cost of living is so high! So I checked what the most expensive city in America pays their police and firefighters. According to the NYPD and FDNY websites, a starting salary for a New York cop is $43,062 and for a New York firefighter it’s $36,400.
Now to be fair, I remember citing a figure of $35,000 in public comment. I guess they got a raise since the last time I saw the data, but still… San Francisco pays our entry-level police officers anywhere from 176% to 236% of what entry-level NYPD officers get! Kind of shatters the cost of living argument, huh?
So what about other places? Well, take a look: below are the starting salaries for some major cities’ police and fire departments, respectively (some fire departments are missing because for some reason they’re harder to find):
Houston $31,965, $35,429
Philadelphia $42,813, $40,036
Chicago $43,104, ?
Phoenix $45,094, $44,038
Washington DC $48,715, ?
Las Vegas $51,168, $50,136
San Diego $55,000, $39,096
Los Angeles $56,522, $46,729 to $64,686 (range)
Seattle $60,672, $59,196
San Jose $70,307, ?
Oakland $71,832 to $90,540 (range), ?
What it comes down to, is that San Francisco pays its police and firefighters salaries that are completely out of line with those of any other major city in America… and Mayor Gavin Newsom wants even more. But public health? That’s expendable. Meanwhile, a mere $10,000 pay cut for each of the 3700 police and firefighters could add a whopping $37,000,000 to the public health budget, and still leave San Francisco with the #1 highest paid cops and firefighters in the nation! Something to consider…
Now to be fair, there are some police and firefighters who understand this. At public comment, one honest firefighter, speaking only for himself, appealed for a compromise solution, saying, “I would rather take money out of my pocket than see a firehouse closed or a union brother lose his job.” That’s a fantastic idea! So where was his union? In a perfect world, they’d be the first in line to come forth with a compromise solution along those lines: we empathize with the weakest among us, so we’ll take a 10% pay cut. We’re willing to share the pain because none of our members are going to be in poverty, but the services that would otherwise be cut are going to lead to more sickness and death among our weakest citizens.
Perhaps in a perfect world. But in the real world, the firefighters’ union was outside calling for the recall of John Avalos, and every Supervisor supporting a budget that shares the pain.
The Hunger Site
July 12, 2009 at 7:53 am
These salaries from starting salaries to the Chief are way out of line. Firehouses are going to be closed because we are spending too much in wages. It is the Union’s greed that may result in poor service or delayed response. Some Police Departments have to offer higher salaries to get new recruits however SFFD has a 5 year waiting list to get in. Why should a position that requires almost no eduction other then paid training, pay so much more than highly educated professionals? Why go to college if you can get into the SFFD? Most of them work other jobs and can retire with up to 90% pay for life after 30 years. It is not like we higher only the best, in fact, with AA and EO, anyone can get hired. I wouldn’t mind so much if they only hired veterans after serving time protecting the country but getting in the SFFD is like winning the lottery at Tax Payers expense.
June 29, 2009 at 1:25 pm
Great article and lots of good information. In regards to SFPD pay, the starting pay is the $75,868. Not $101,556. Day 1 in the Police Academy, the salary is $75,868. That is for the first two year, which includes academy, field training and probationary period. After the two years, new Officers finish their probation and earn a slight increase, and work their way to up to the cap. $101,556 is the cap. I do not know how long it takes to get to the cap, but I do know that it is somewhere around 7 to 8 years. Therefore, a Police Officer with 8 to 30 years of services are all making the same generous pay of $101,556, and are bound by the salary cap. Generous indeed, but it does stop pretty fast and doesn’t rise any further without a new union contract. Also, keep in mind, San Francisco recently raised the starting pay for Police Officers to make it comparable to other cities, but nothing in the back end of the pay scale changed, only the starting pay. Some might wonder, then why do they advertise such a large gap for starting pay? The answer is some new hires were Police Officers from different cities. Their years of service are added after they complete their probationary period. This is standard across the state. So if a Police Officer from Daly City, with 15 years of experience decided to join SFPD, he/she would be at the top step of $101,556 after they finish probation. If he/she has somewhere in the range 3 to 5 years experience in a different city, they fall somewhere in between.
As for the comparisons in salaries, it might be odd to see San Francisco at such a high pay scale, but it is compared to how much Police Officer’s make in the **SURROUNDING AREAS** It is not compared to large cities around the country. It may be weird, but that is how it is negotiated for any union contract, regardless of occupation, private sector or government. If cities compared just in size alone, Santa Clara PD, a city just 40 miles south of San Francisco, wouldn’t make $98,676 to $119,904 a year.
Santa Clara PD: $98,676 to $119,904 a year
http://santaclaraca.gov/hu_resources/job-detail.aspx?job=650
Richmond PD: $82,548 to $111,540 a year
http://ca-richmond.civicplus.com/DocumentView.aspx?DID=435
Mountain View PD: $84,348 to $102,428 a year
https://www.calopps.org/ViewAgencyJob.cfm?ID=7067&kw=police
And the list can go on with Bay Area cities where their Police make more than San Francisco and have better benefits and retirement packages. These are just some that are hiring. Are there others that make less, of course there are.
In the Bay Area, SFPD comes out in the high-middle. SFPD might come out a little higher to the top, but not by much compared to other cities in the Bay Area. Also, SFPD Officers pay 7% of their salary to their retirement and a smaller, unknown percentage of their salary for benefits (health care, dental, etc.). Other cities in the Bay Area do something similar, and other pay for it completely.
SFPD’s retirement package is 3% @ 55, compared to most, which is 3% @ 50.
If you don’t understand what that means, the 3% @ ?? means if you work as a Police Officer for 30 year, you would collect 90% of your base pay rate (30 years x 3% = 90% of base salary). Replace the 30 with any other number of years worked to figure other outcomes of retirements. 90% is the standard cap for all Police agencies just about everywhere in California, but not all Police Officers work the full 30 years.
50 or 55, is the retirement age to collect the retirement. Most Bay Area cities have their Police Officer retire, and collect, at age 50. In San Francisco, a Police Officer can retire at age 50, but cannot collect till age 55. Still not too bad overall, but five extra years and the end of your career can be a long time.
Police Unions have negotiated this into their contracts, because it is widely known that the life expectancy of a Police Officer, after he/she retires, is somewhere in the area of 5-10 years (age 60 to 65). Police Officers tend to pass away a younger age then normal, Why? It is only speculation, but it is thought to be due to high amounts of stress during the course of their career. Just to elaborate a little, a normal person, working a normal job, maintains a fairly regular adrenaline line throughout the day. They know what’s going to happen and can have a reasonable idea of the things that can go wrong. However, a Police Officer’s adrenaline stays up at a higher rate, just due to the fact that the thing they deal with in their line of work is unexpected, and they must prepare for the worst on all situations. Let’s face, no one calls the Police because their having a great day and just wanted them to share in the moment. People only call when something bad has happened (robbery, homicide, rape, etc.), and it can hit at any time, and situations can change at anytime. This type of stress on the body makes them more prone to heart attacks, strokes and other things of that nature, at a younger age than normal. Great retirement packages, but do they really get to enjoy it? AGAIN, THIS IS ONLY SPECULATION. I AM NOT A DOCTOR CAN CANNOT PRESENT IT AS FACT.
I understand where many might think SFPD Officers are overpaid, however, it is the total LONG TERM package that the Officers compare to see if their salary is fair and comparable to the surrounding areas, not just the starting salary, which is only comparable for a short time. Also, keep in mind that in the Bay Area, San Francisco has the highest level of call volume.
San Francisco: http://sf.everyblock.com/police-calls/
Just over 94,000 calls for service in a 30 day period
San Jose: http://sanjose.everyblock.com/
Just over 22,000 calls for service in a 30 day period
(Couldn’t find any other cities, but it can only go down from here in the Bay Area)
People talk about overtime pay. It is true that Officers make a significant amount with overtime. However, most of it is not paid by the City. It is paid by Private event coordinators. For example, AT&T Park and Candlestick Park pay for extra Police presence so their games run smoothly. PG&E and other construction companies pay for extra Police presence for traffic control and for the safety of their employees. Officers make overtime from the City when they are stuck on a late arrest, have to go to court on their days off, or for something like a protest, where you have to have Police to preserve the Peace. Let’s face it. Crime does not stop just because an Officer is about to get off his/her shift. I wouldn’t expect any Officer not to respond to an emergency just because their about to go home. Safety of the public first, then go home.
So in comparison, do SFPD deserve the salary that they are getting? The economy is bad, everyone knows that and understands that, including Police Officers. It is not even taking a pay cut that would bother SFPD, it is the thought that everyone believes they are being greedy, they do not want to give their fair share, and/or their highly overpaid and underworked. SFPD Officers voted to forgo a portion of their raises and benefits, at the City’s request. The Officer received the request from the City, and approved it the 1st go around. It did not go back and forth, vote after vote. The City asked, and the Officers said,†Sure. We understand times are tuff. If this is what you are asking us to give up to help out, no problem.†It is hard to find in a publication that published it, but it is listed at the end of the 1st page here: http://www.sfpoa.org/Journal/Journals/20090601.pdf
Something to think about when wondering if SFPD makes too much for what they do.
June 23, 2009 at 6:55 pm
If the city has enough money to have another redundant “jobs” program down there at Kamala Harris’s DA office, there is plenty of money to go around.
June 22, 2009 at 9:42 pm
Hey, thanks for all your comments everybody. Not much here to disagree with.
To davidwaggoner:
I agree completely that we need to focus on getting the very rich to step up to the plate. The question is how. The city can’t even tax their income right now, only their real estate. And every time we try to do that, it’s a huge battle at the ballot box. I’m for it 100%, but we need to change the whole tax structure, pass progressive legislation in Sacramento, and win a few more revenue-raising measures at the ballot box. In the meantime, services are being cut -right now, this year, and the only thing the supes can do right now is work with this budget.
To Javalos:
Hey, I’m glad you’re reading this. I know you guys can’t change contracts -again, you can only allocate money into various budgets. But I’m glad you’re taking the initiative on pushing for a more equitable allocation. The fire department can decide whether they want to close firehouses or just cut everyone’s pay a little bit.
Right now, however, they’re trying to frame it as closing firehouses being the only choice if their budget is cut. I hope that this piece helps change that narrative and change the conversation about this issue.
June 22, 2009 at 9:24 pm
The Board was correct in cutting $82M from the Police and Fire Department Budgets. But don’t use these cuts to divert money to other programs. Make them truly cuts in the budget. Focus on most needed services, and figure out how to deliver them more efficiently. We still haven’t figured out that part yet. SF can’t do everything for everybody. Someone has to have the guts to say NO.
June 22, 2009 at 12:12 pm
I think I wrote the only review of Gavin Newsom’s hour long appearance on Current TV, http://tinyurl.com/nh2bky, One of the first environmental achievements he bragged about, in support of his gubernatorial campaign, was finally finding enough “human resources”–i.e., police–to go after the trash poachers plucking redeemable bottles and cans out of the big blue recycling bins before Sunset Scavenger’s trucks come.
I’m through giving Sunset Scavenger any of my redeemable recyclables.
June 20, 2009 at 10:32 pm
Why should any budget be balanced on the backs of teachers and police officers and social workers and firefighters – not to mention the unemployed, homeless and disabled – instead of those most able to manage with less? If the only answer is that the rich can hire the consultants, lobbyists and PR machines that the other folks can’t, then it appears the system is NOT working. The focus should not be on a police officer in SF making 100K a year. The focus should be on anyone having control of 100 or 1000 or 10000 times more resources than a teacher, firefighter or social worker. The argument that, unless a person has the potential to become a billionaire, she or he will never get out of bed and have no incentive to ever do anything “productive,” is baseless. The vast majority of teachers, cops and firefighters do their work honorably without ever expecting to become billionaires. Equitable renumeration policies recognize the importance of public safety and public health. Massive accumulation of wealth serves only the wealthy. The unregulated market is great for the CEO and big business, but also requires incredible social inequity. The uber rich couldn’t be happier that SF’s budget crisis has come down to a struggle between public health and public safety.
June 20, 2009 at 3:41 pm
Great article! Stunning and sobering facts. I think we can still attract and recruit quality police and firefighters while bringing their salaries to a more reasonable level. I also think it is time to cancel the annual 6% raise for the SFPD so we can save prevention programs. The governor imposed a unilateral 10% pay cut on us and the judge approved it. If the state of Ca. is having an emergency, so is SF.
I know for my job we have salary “ranges” but I’ve never known the criteria for why employees with the same standing could potentially be paid at different rates. All of my coworkers have always started at the lowest range to the best of my knowledge.
I think this is one fight that we have to win! It is very discouraging that some factions of the SFFD and SFPD have taken such an adversarial and divisive stance. I agree that public health is public safety. I think Luke is right on about taxing billionaires. I don’t agree with “across the board” salary reductions for all city employees. I think it is only fair if it is imposed on employees making over $100 k. I cannot find where Luke posted this so I am not sure if he already placed such a limit but in the above post it seems that it is across the board period.
BTW-I did not catch all the grammatical errors in my last post until after I posted. Sorry folks!
June 20, 2009 at 2:28 pm
Thanks for the putting this info out. My office has been poking around on these salaries and other wage related issues.
Unfortunately, under the city charter, the Board has no authority to negotiate contracts, just the Mayor. We can only appropriate or deappropriate $.
Btw, some unions are more equal than others; an across the board % giveback will not cut it equitably, e.g. POA and fire fighters union are getting a 24-26% raise between 2007 and 2011. Their recent “give back” was really a deferment (and not a cut) of 2% and I believe an allowance to extend their 6-7% yearly increase into 2012.
I encourage you to stay tuned for future board action.
June 20, 2009 at 9:53 am
Actually, the estimate to balance the budget through a sliding scale across the board salary cut would be somewhere between 13 and 17 percent.
http://tinyurl.com/rdllcq
June 20, 2009 at 9:34 am
Solutions?
This is a nice exchange but it has zero solutions. Luke Thomas is only one who has offered one. He says cut all salaries in the City across the board by 25% and don’t lay anyone off. The supes all nod that it’s a good idea but none of them will even bring it up in public.
Put your giant brains together. Is this a good idea or a bad idea?
Surprise visitors to last night’s Walnut Creek CA10 candidates’ forum … Barry Hermanson and Eric Jaye (not together). Garamendi and Hampton have their respective kickoffs in Walnut Creek today. Adriel’s across from Civic Park at 1632 Live Oak way. BBQ and PBR. Meet the SF civil service corps where they live and vote.
h.
June 20, 2009 at 8:19 am
“… the firefighters’ union was outside calling for the recall of John Avalos, and every Supervisor supporting a budget that shares the pain.”
You’re too right.
Gavin (and Willie Brown) wants to be governor by showing he can manage SF without raising taxes.
June 19, 2009 at 7:08 pm
I saw your testimony at that hearing and thought it was absolutely to the point. And your remarks about your own Supervisor from District 4 “with no empathy” was perfection.
I covered the firefighter’s rally, by the way, for my “Civic Center” blog and I don’t think the whole “Let us in!” scenario was planned at all. It was more a case of cluelessness, with most of the suburban firefighters and their families being rabbleroused by Willie Brown and Gary Delagnes and Gavin Newsom, and then sent in to City Hall without being instructed on where the hell they were supposed to go and what to do when they got there.
June 19, 2009 at 4:19 pm
Under cover of a budget crisis, Mayor Newsom has proposed a mean-spirited budget. Many citizens have become uncomfortable or even incensed by the unsightlyness, the public inebriation, the rantings of the the mentally ill, and the homeless camping in Golden Gate Park. For many of us who care, it may be unsightly, but it does remind us each day, that the richest country in the world is unable or unwilling to do little more than provide band-aid solutions for the poorest among us. But it will be beyond uncomfortable for those who have already hit bottom or will shortly arrive there. Shame on you Mr. Mayor for even considering a budget that disproportionally cuts the public assistance programs serving as social safety nets for children, the poor, the homeless, the sick, and the elderly.
June 19, 2009 at 1:36 pm
Here’s a link to the MOU:
http://www.sfgov.org/site/sfdhr_page.asp?id=50899
Download the document titled – Firefighters, Local 798, Unit 1 (PDF) – and go to Section 9.
June 19, 2009 at 1:25 pm
“According to SFGOV, ….an entry-level firefighter without paramedic training receives $70,486 -$98,670. I don’t know how they determine which entry-level candidates get the upper range of that, but keep in mind that no part of this range implies experience – ”
The SFFD MOU states that newly hired entry-level firefighters start at salary step #1, which is currently $70,486. Firefighters get regular step increases over time which, at it’s highest level, results in the $98,670 salary ceiling. Clearly, it’s still disproportionate to other cities though.
June 19, 2009 at 12:58 pm
I just double-checked Greg’s work for San Francisco and New York, which took less than five minutes. I found exactly the same information he quoted for these four departments, except the starting salary for New York firefighters is actually $40,900 — if you count fringe benefits.
Check it out for yourselves:
SF Police = http://www.sfgov.org/site/police_index.asp?id=27855
SF Fire = http://www.jobaps.com/SF/specs/classspecdisplay.asp?ClassNumber=00H2
NY Police = http://nypdrecruit.com/NYPD_BenefitsOverview.aspx
NY Fire = http://www.nyc.gov/html/fdny/html/community/ff_salary_benefits_080106.shtml
June 19, 2009 at 12:41 pm
Thanks for writing this, Greg … Very helpful information.