Firefighters fiddled while public got burned up over high pay

Behold the firefighter. Enter a room, and women's eyes brighten. Men envy you. Children want to be like you.

It wasn't so long ago that just about everyone adored local firefighters.

Clark County Fire Department officials could crow that their outfit ranked among the best in the nation. It also was one of the best-paid departments in the country. When Southern Nevada was booming few citizens complained, or bothered to check the bottom line. Firefighters and paramedics performed difficult and dangerous duty, and nearly everyone loved them.

Consider that love affair a thing of the past. County firefighters and their union representatives have only themselves to blame. By their arrogance and greed, they invited the scrutiny and criticism of their hog-fat contract that haunts them now that an arbitrator has sided with Clark County in its contract negotiations with International Association of Firefighters Local 1908. (The new contract calls for $7.4 million in wage and benefit cuts. The union had offered $6.1 million in cuts.)

The fact the union for more than a year failed to appreciate the dire financial predicament Southern Nevada finds itself in speaks to its naked hubris and lack of political acumen. And it never helps when dozens of firefighters are exposed for taking home $200,000 in pay while others gamed the sick leave and overtime system.

Quick question: Why are the press and public still skewering the county firefighters instead of, say, the well-paid Metro police officers?

In part, because Sheriff Doug Gillespie and the Police Protective Association acknowledged the recession, took a pay cut, and avoided generating ill will from a struggling public. Today, Metro is perceived as a community partner while county firefighters are on the post office wall.

The department fiddled while Southern Nevada's economy burned. Union president Ryan Beaman has the unenviable task of trying to spin an embarrassing defeat in a positive light. Good luck, pal.

He claims the union has addressed the sick leave/overtime problem, but only reluctantly admitted the fire department shared oversight responsibility. Although he called the sick leave abuse an issue with a "small percentage" of firefighters, he placed the blame for not acting more quickly at the feet of former Chief Steve Smith and current fire suppression chief Ken Morgan.

"I want to fix the issue regarding sick leave," Beaman said. "I've said this before. In any organization our size, there's definitely bad apples and you're not going to get rid of those people. I want to fix where there's not an abuse of sick leave. It's not fair to the taxpayers. It's not fair to the guys that are out there on this job, that are busting their butt day in and day out to provide a service to the community. Because, they're the ones that are being painted with this big roller."

The department's public relations nightmare is far from over. Would it bother you to know dozens of county and city firefighters earn six-figure pay in Southern Nevada, but actually live in Southern Utah and elsewhere? It's true.

While it's hard to begrudge anyone seeking relief from the glare of Las Vegas, these are government employees paid with Southern Nevada tax dollars. It shouldn't be too much to ask to have them live in the state that pays their bills.

"I agree with that," Beaman said. "There's no question. The money they are making here should stay here."

But he admitted no one is ordering the out-of-staters to return.

If they're ever going to repair their badly damaged image, county fire representatives should start by accepting responsibility for their own mistakes. The greed and arrogance hang heavy in the air.

County firefighters are forfeiting more than salary and benefits. They're throwing away the trust and respect of the public.

John L. Smith's column appears Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. E-mail him at Smith@reviewjournal.com or call 702-383-0295. He also blogs at lvrj.com/blogs/smith.