The politically charged dispute by Boston police officers that could affect the Democratic National Convention in that city has “obscured some very basic facts about police pay,” editorializes the Boston Herald. The average annual compensation for Boston Police Patrolmen’s Association members comes to $81,000. How many city’s taxpayers who are being asked to foot the bill for raises even come close to earning that kind of money each year, the Herald asks.
Of the 1,400 union members, 264 took home more than $100,000 last year, a total of 456 earned more than $90,000. One patrolman (base pay $56,145) topped out at $152,373 in compensation which included $25,000 in overtime, $59,000 in paid details and more than $10,000 in other benefits. “Boston has always been in the top five cities in the nation in per capita cost of police services,” said one researcher. The city is offering raises of 11.9 percent over four years. The union is looking for 17 percent with 4 percent in the first year, which the city says is not fiscally manageable. This comes at a time when the city lost $79 million in state aid.
Link: http://news.bostonherald.com/opinion/view.bg?articleid=31481&format=