Jan. 25--Retired Riverside Fire Chief Steve Earley, who the city manager decided Jan. 7 not to rehire as a consultant, received a quarter-of-a-million-dollar payout for leave time he accumulated on the job.
After 32 years with the city, Earley suddenly announced in December that he would retire at the end of the month. City officials said they had expected him to stay another year.
City Manager Scott Barber named three firefighters who were to serve as acting chiefs and said Earley was to mentor them and work on other fire issues at $100 an hour. But Barber reversed course after public outcry and opposition from the firefighters' union.
While working for the city, Earley accrued more than 3,351 hours of leave, the bulk of which was sick time, according to a document the city released in response to a public records request.
On his retirement, he cashed out 2,067.75 hours of leave and was paid $252,031, the document said.
Under city policy, Earley was eligible to cash out half his accrued sick time, a city official said.
Reached Thursday, Jan. 23, Earley declined to comment on the payout.
Included in the payout was nearly 703 hours of vacation time, which exceeds the 612-hour cap specified in the city employee handbook.
Assistant City Manager Belinda Graham, who oversees the fire department, said city management tries to remind people to take vacations, but in Earley's case, the city was required to pay out the time he had accrued.
"With all our employees we work to have them stick to the limit, but on occasion employees can't take the time off, so they are over the limit," she said.
After deciding not to rehire Earley, Barber named Deputy Chief Mike Esparza as interim chief during the search for a permanent chief.
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Contact Alicia Robinson
at 951-368-9461 or [email protected]
Copyright 2014 - The Press-Enterprise, Riverside, Calif.
