County fire battalion chief fired for abusing sick leave system

A Clark County fire battalion chief was terminated Thursday because, according to county officials, she misused sick leave and aided others in abusing the system.

Renee Dillingham is the second county firefighter to be terminated for sick leave abuse in an internal probe that began six months ago when evidence of potential misuse came to light.

The public uproar also prompted a police and FBI inquiry, which could turn into a criminal investigation.

Dillingham, a 24-year veteran, was the first woman hired as a county battalion chief. She couldn't be reached for comment.

She has five business days to challenge her firing and request an arbitrator.

Dillingham will be allowed to collect her pension and cash in unused sick leave and vacation. No estimates were available Thursday on the dollar amount.

In May, Donald Munn was fired after managers determined he had abused sick leave. A dozen other firefighters are under internal investigation and could lose their jobs, be demoted or forfeit six months of sick time.

County Commissioner Steve Sisolak, who pushed for investigations into sick leave abuse, said the fire chief was being slow and thorough about punishing wrongdoers to ensure the actions aren't overturned on appeal.

"Hopefully the public sees we take this very seriously and are not going to let it go," Sisolak said.

He said he would like those who defrauded the public to pay restitution.

County officials have expressed doubts about whether they can compel firefighters to repay anything.

The labor contract forbids using sick leave for vacation instead of medical problems.

Firefighters' sick leave can be costly because the tight staffing often requires those who fill in for absent co-workers to be paid overtime, and usually for 24 hours.

Overtime helped push the average wage of firefighters in 2010 to $130,000 and battalion chiefs to $180,000.

Most firefighters who return to work less than 12 hours after finishing a shift -- say, to fill in for a crew member -- also qualify for callback pay, in which a portion of that day's earnings goes toward pensions.

Last year, Dillingham received $274,000 in total wages and benefits, which included $123,000 in base pay and $30,000 in callback.

Emails in 2009 indicate Dillingham broke sick leave rules.

In one email, Dillingham described making a "sick roster" for her fellow battalion chiefs to take home rather than post. The roster contained calendars in which the chiefs penciled themselves in for sick time weeks in advance.

Dillingham arranged sick leave months ahead with battalion chief Gina Geldbach-Hall, who is now retired.

"I will be taking off June 10, 17, 19, 21, 23 and 25 (all sick days if I can work it out ..)," Geldbach-Hall writes in an email. "Again, thanks. It is so much nicer having a scheduler I can work with."

Ryan Beaman, head of the county firefighters union, didn't reply to phone messages or emails.

In the past, Beaman has backed the county punishing those who misuse sick leave, though he also has questioned whether the county can fire or demote firefighters under the labor contract.

The contract calls for a firefighter to forfeit up to six months of sick time for flouting the rules, Beaman has said.

Commissioner Tom Collins, a strong union advocate, said managers received careful instructions on how to investigate and punish those suspected of abuse.

"I would feel pretty confident that management followed the proper steps in this action," Collins said.

It turned out to be a relative handful of culprits rather than the 230 fire­fighters who were initially suspected, Collins added.

Sisolak countered that managers only had hard evidence, such as emails, on a dozen or so firefighters. Law enforcement agencies have more tools for ferreting out malfeasance, he said.

"I'm hoping the feds can turn up more with their investigation," Sisolak said.

Contact reporter Scott Wyland at
swyland@reviewjournal.com or 702-455-4519.