The City set two records in 2011 for city worker pay, with one employee earning more than $200,000 for the first time ever, and more employees than ever before making over $100,000.
School Superintendent Paul Dakin topped all earners once again in 2011 and also broke a new milestone for municipal pay – breaking the $200,000 ceiling for the first time ever, according to payroll records released by the City’s Finance Department this week.
In 2001, former Superintendent Carol Tye broke the $100,000 barrier and was the first city employee in history to make more than $100,000 per year.
“It’s a function of how many years I’ve been on the job,†he said. “When you’re on the job longer, the clock doesn’t reset to where the salary first started. It’s completely appreciated and certainly one reason why I haven’t left the district despite other opportunities.â€
The average salary nationwide for a school district superintendent is somewhere in the $165,000 range.
Dakin topped the second highest earner, Police Lt. Jeremiah Goodwin ($175,540), by nearly $30,000. It should be noted, though, that Goodwin’s salary – and that of most other police officers – is bolstered by paid detail money. In his case, he earned $37,186 in details.
Former Police Chief Terence Reardon comes in number three on the list, but is actually the second-highest salary – at $172,408. As police chief, he was not allowed to work details and his salary was part of an existing contract that was to expire this coming August.
His 2011 salary was more than $11,000 higher than in 2010.
More noteworthy was that the number of workers exceeding $100,000 per yea skyrocketed in 2011.
The past two years have seen a decline in the number of employees earning more than $100,000, but this year that trend was reversed…and then some.
The number of those earning more than $100,000 has been a benchmark over the last 10 years as municipal salaries have literally exploded in Revere and many other communities.
In 2001, Revere had only one earner over $100,000.
However, by 2008, that number had grown to 71 earners.
Then, it started to decline for a few years, with 63 earning more than $100,000 last year.
This year, though, brought on a new record, with 81 individuals topping $100,000 in 2011.
Most of the top earners were from the Police Department and the School Department. As always, it should be noted that the Gross Earnings for Police Officers include paid details that were worked throughout the year. Many times, those extra hours can bolster the final salary by many thousands of dollars. Therefore, base pay for the highest paid officers is rarely at the top of the salary list.
Seven of the top 10 earners were from the Police Department, while three were from the School Department.
Former Mayor Tom Ambrosino came in at 26th, making $126,492 last year.
The top in paid detail earnings in the Police Department this year went to Officer Louis Larosa, who earned $56,776 in paid detail money – by far the highest in the department.
Overall, the entire City payroll increased by $4.774 million in 2011, and the average municipal salary (including full-time, part-time and per diem workers) was $36,198.
The lowest paid municipal employee on the list this year was Anthony Sacco, who earned $32 as a temporary laborer.
Sidebar – City Councillors re-shuffle the seniority deck in 2011
For many years, the same councillors pulled in the highest salaries.
In 2011, though, there was a bit of a change.
The top-earner on the City Council in 2011 was Ward 5 Councillor John Powers, who earned $22,804 serving as council president.
The list of earners goes as follows:
1. John Powers, Ward 5 $22,804
2. Ira Novoselsky, Ward 2 $21,646
3. John Correggio, At-Large $21,113
4. Charlie Patch, Ward 6 $20,913
5. Bob Haas, At-Large $19,446
6. Arthur Guinasso, Ward 3 $18,246
7. Dan Rizzo, At-Large $16,846
8. Tony Zambuto, At-Large $16,246
9. Richard Penta, Ward 1 $15,346
10. Stephen Reardon, Ward 4 $15,346
11. George Rotondo, At-Large$15,346
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