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Overtime Pay For L.A. Firefighters Soars

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Apr 20, 2009 9:26 am US/Pacific

Overtime Pay For L.A. Firefighters Soars

LOS ANGELES (CBS) ―

Click to enlarge 1 of 1: Firefighters fight the blaze on one of the last remaining structures in the Oakridge Mobile Home Park on Nov. 15, 2008.
Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images

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Overtime pay for the Los Angeles Fire Department has soared 60 percent over the last decade, The Daily News reported Monday.

Despite the soar, there has been no real effort to rein in the expense, according to the Daily News.

The analysis found that L.A. firefighters averaged six times more overtime, in comparison to Chicago firefighters, five times more than Houston and two times more than their counterparts in San Diego.

According to the Daily News, 56 firefighters earned at least $100,000 in overtime in addition to their annual salaries in 2008. The average Los Angeles firefighter earned $36,000 in overtime last year and the average salary with overtime in 2008 was $117,000.

The Los Angeles Fire Department's top earner racked up a total of $570,276 in overtime in a span of the last three years, the Daily News reported.

A department spokesperson said recruits earn overtime for after-hours remedial training "if they feel the need for more time to grasp the skills."

Over the past ten years, the Fire Department increased its staffing by 17 percent as the city's needs have grown.