(The Center Square) – A city of Los Angeles fire captain made $801,389 in 2023 thanks to $613,931 in overtime and was the city’s highest paid active employee.
According to city documents, the captain’s base pay in 2023 was $176,832, and he was paid $613,931 in overtime. By comparison, L.A. Mayor Karen Bass made $300,154 in 2023.
City employees can also be paid for things such as bonuses, payments made for unused sick time or vacation time and various other salary perks that the city sums up as “all other pay.”
Firefighters have become the top-paid employees across many cities due to the staffing model that triggers overtime and makes it mandatory for all absences to be filled regardless of the need.
The department stated they do not comment on specific personnel matters or employees’ earnings, however, the department said it is experiencing a staffing shortage, and the volume of calls and demands for services have significantly increased.
“The department utilizes overtime to ensure that Fire Engines, Trucks, and Rescue Ambulances are always available to meet the community’s needs. The Department has also experienced a wave of retirements over the last year, requiring firefighters to work additional shifts while new firefighters are hired and trained,” said the department in an email to The Center Square.
Salaries comprised 89.4% of the $819 million 2024-25 operating budget according to the document. The department had a $819 million operating budget in 2024-25.
A fire battalion chief made a base salary of $222,405 and $456,260 in overtime that led to a gross pay of $691,340 in 2023.
Other high city earners include a water and power load dispatcher who made a base salary of $184,433 in 2023 with $396,616 in overtime and had $786,789. That made him the second-highest paid employee in the city.
A supervisor in the water and power department had a base salary of $204,063 with $435,621 in overtime with total pay of $740,542 in 2023, according to the city payroll information.
According to the department’s website, Los Angeles has one of the largest firefighting agencies in the world. It serves almost four million people across the city and has 3,246 employees, including 1,051 uniformed firefighters, 218 of whom serve dually as firefighters and through EMS.
The 2024-25 budget also shows the department is looking to train 220 Firefighter Recruits in 2024-25 through the Valley Recruit Training Academy, investing $13.6 million.
