Fire chief of tiny district to lose $186,370 job but get $300,000 severance

[heli]

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2011157863_pay23m.html

Fire chief of tiny district to lose job but get $300,000 severance
To lower costs, the North Highline Fire District is eliminating its fire chief, whose salary is higher than the governor's, but he is set to receive more than $300,000 under a severance package.
By Keith Ervin, Seattle Times staff reporter

As North Highline fire chief, Scott LaVielle oversees two stations and 35 employees and last year earned more than Gov. Chris Gregoire. LaVielle's pay of $186,370 even outpaced the salary of Seattle Fire Chief Gregory Dean, who made $173,709 for managing 32 stations and 1,155 employees.

Now, as LaVielle prepares to leave the job, he is set to receive more than $300,000 under a severance package that includes one year's pay plus about $115,880 for unused sick leave, vacation and compensatory time. David Lawson, a former North Highline fire commissioner and now chief financial officer of Federal Way-based South King Fire & Rescue, calls the chief's pay "outrageously high."

This small district, serving White Center, Boulevard Park and other communities between Seattle and Burien, has a history of paying its fire chiefs extraordinary salaries. But as the economy tanked and the size of the district shrank, officials have been scrambling to cut back.

The North Highline Fire Department's three commissioners voted to abolish the chief's position, effective the end of this month. They also reduced LaVielle's salary by $2,000 a month for his final two months and began negotiations to turn his duties over to the chief of the neighboring Burien/Normandy Park Fire Department...

[lazarus]

1. I don't mind

someone getting paid for untaken leave. I question getting paid for sick leave. And a year's pay? That's ridiculous.

[DrDan]

4. ridiculous? not necessarily.

I did not see how many years he worked in that department. It only says he had a long career there.

I work for a large corporation. Our policy is 2 weeks per year. So 26 years would be a year's salary.

I don't think that is out of line for other corporations that I am aware of.

And sick pay? My wife as a teacher would be paid for her unused sick pay upon retirement.

[MercutioATC]

5. His pay might be high, but the severance package is reasonable.

I don't get severance pay, but I'm cashed out of my vacation time and sick leave when I retire/quit/am fired.

[DrDan]

2. that headline is misleading - he is getting a year's pay in severance ($186K)

and paid for his vacation, unused sick leave and compensatory time. These are not "severance".

[virgogal]

3. How the hell did his salary get that high in the first place. He has 35

reporting people?

Unbelievable !