Pubdate: Tue, 04 Apr 2006
Source: La Crosse Tribune (WI)
Copyright: 2006 The La Crosse Tribune
Contact: http://www.lacrossetribune.com/tools/submit.php
Website: http://www.lacrossetribune.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/229
Author: Joan Kent, La Crosse Tribune
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis)

CITY OT RISES TO MORE THAN $900,000

The city of La Crosse paid about $910,000 in overtime in 2005, with 
nine employees receiving more than $10,000 each and the top earner 
collecting almost $25,000, according to figures provided by the city.

For the fourth year in a row, La Crosse police Detective Marion 
Byerson garnered the most overtime pay at $24,577, increasing his 
gross pay to $85,961 for 2005, about $5,000 less than Chief Ed Kondracki.

Since 2000, Byerson has earned a total of $118,313 in overtime.

The city paid $909,779 in overtime in 2005, compared with 
approximately $831,000 in 2004.

Eight of the nine who logged more than $10,000 in overtime work in 
the police department.

The police department leads overtime spending because it has been 
successful in securing grants for overtime for such activities as 
alcohol and drug enforcement, Kondracki said.

Last year, the department's drug arrests were up 15 percent and 
liquor law arrests up 36 percent, he said. The drug arrests have been 
major, "not high school and college students with marijuana in their 
socks," Kondracki added.

Paying overtime is more cost-effective than hiring additional 
officers that would require training and benefits, he said. "On a 
day-to-day basis, the police department is staffed to meet our calls 
for service, but when it comes to beefing up patrols, that's when 
overtime money is required," he said.

John T. Gallagher, accounting technician in the city Finance 
Department, made the second-highest amount of overtime at $18,059. 
His pay for 2005 was $60,282.

Gallagher has ranked in the top three overtime recipients since 2000, 
earning a total of $103,476 in overtime.

"Nothing has changed," said Finance Director Gene Pfaff. "We are 
short an employee ... We were paying the county $100,000 a year (to 
do the work). Now we do the work in-house, but the same chunk of work 
needs to be accomplished."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom