Ana Rijal

MassOpenBooks: A Look at the Top Departments by Average Overtime Pay in 2018

/0 Comments/in , /by Ana Rijal
Share on Facebook
Share on Twitter
Share on
LinkedIn
+

In 2018, the Commonwealth provided a total of $368.15 million in overtime pay to state employees. MassOpenBooks, Pioneer Institute’s government transparency tool, sorts through and presents this data in an accessible manner. Below is a chart that lists the top 10 departments by average overtime pay for 2018.

Source: MassOpenBooks

As indicated in the payroll section of MassOpenBooks, the Department of State Police has been the top agency for average overtime pay since 2010, the earliest year for which data has been made available by the state. From this time to 2018, average overtime pay increased 34.73 percent. This change is particularly concerning, considering the department’s recent overtime scandal.

The State Police Department is not the only law enforcement agency to experience large increases in overtime. The Department of Corrections (DOC) reflects a similar, but more extreme, trend.

According to a DOC report, the prison population has decreased every year since 2012. Specifically, from 2015 to 2018, the prison population decreased by 14.85 percent. Despite this decrease, overtime pay at the DOC continues to rise. In 2015, the average overtime pay at the DOC was $3,381. In 2018, the average was $9,082. This amounts to a massive 168.62 percent increase in average overtime pay in just four years. 

The total overtime pay at the DOC has also increased significantly, rising from $19,256,071 in 2015 to $48,081,913 in 2018 – an increase of approximately 150 percent. Considering the previously mentioned prison population decrease, one has to question why there has been such a dramatic increase in overtime pay.

One explanation for this discrepancy may lie in DOC hiring practices. From 2015 to 2018, there has been an 8.19 percent decrease in the number of DOC employees. In Massachusetts, employees are entitled to 1.5 times their hourly wage for time worked beyond 40 hours a week. If the DOC has fewer employees, each may need to work more overtime. Is this the right course?

The issue of overtime increases at the DOC came into the spotlight with the case of Raymond Wallace. After being charged with two violent crimes, Wallace attempted to escape in July 2016 when he was involved in a shootout resulting in injury. After the shooting, Wallace was held at the Lemuel Shattuck Hospital, a DOC facility in Jamaica Plain. According to The Salem News, “if he [Essex County Sheriff Kevin Coppinger] has enough staff on duty during a shift, he can send someone to Boston for the Shattuck detail…But frequently, he doesn’t… [Which] forces him to tap into his overtime budget”. This lead to a cost of nearly $2 million in overtime pay over 4.5 years to guard a single inmate. 

Deciding between increased hiring and providing more overtime is one that all agencies have to consider. MassOpenBooks facilitates transparency by making payroll and overtime data accessible so the public can question governmental practices – and hopefully get answers.

Get our MassWatch updates!

Related posts:

UMass Football Coach is the 7th Highest Paid Employee in the State

0 Comments
/
Football fans across the country wait in anticipation for the…

New Report: Massachusetts Maintains Reasonable Debt Relative to GSP

0 Comments
/
Massachusetts has more debt than any New England state. Can we afford to pay it off or will we hand it down to future generations?

New Hampshire Tax Burden Dramatically Less than Massachusetts

0 Comments
/
New Hampshire collects less than half the amount of taxes per capita as Massachusetts. How do they do it, and which strategy produces better outcomes?

The Green Line Extension Project Progress and Finances

0 Comments
/
Earlier this month, a Boston Globe article informed Boston residents…

Healthcare dominates the job market.

0 Comments
/
Healthcare and social assistance are among the most important…

Looming Budget Crisis Reveals MBTA’s Dependency on Federal Funds

0 Comments
/
The MBTA is about to lose federal funding at a critical moment when ridership has not yet recovered. Will the state make up the difference?

High School Education in Brighton, MA

0 Comments
/
In 2010, Brighton High School in Boston had an enrollment of…

A Decade of Culture and Recreation Spending on Cape Cod

0 Comments
/
Culture and Recreation are among the most important services…

A Decade of Police Spending on Cape Cod

0 Comments
/
Police spending is often the subject of debate in town halls…

Barnstable County: What Towns Tax the Most?

0 Comments
/
The housing market has been the center of American economic growth…

Property Crime Rates and Motor Vehicle Theft in Eastern Massachusetts Cities

0 Comments
/
An article published in May by WBUR shined a light on the recent…
This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.

Healthcare Employs More on Cape Cod Than Any Other Sector

0 Comments
/
Despite being a major tourist destination, the largest employment sector on Cape Cod is not related to tourism: it is healthcare!

With Declining Enrollment, Public Colleges in Massachusetts Cut Back Adjunct Faculty Positions

0 Comments
/
The number of adjunct faculty positions is declining at public colleges and universities in Massachusetts.

Massachusetts Tax Revenues Surpass Pre-Pandemic Levels

0 Comments
/
Pandemic recovery and then some! Massachusetts revenues are higher than anyone was expecting, but where is all the money coming from? And what does this mean for the Massachusetts economy?

Sunshine Week 2022 – Government Transparency Has a Great New Ally

While government transparency is a year-round pursuit, Sunshine Week marks a unique opportunity to reflect on our past work and plan for our future work to weave this most necessary fabric of a free and healthy democracy.

How did COVID impact Massachusetts’ long-term care facilities?

Pioneer Institute has filed a Public Records Act request related to COVID's impact on Massachusetts’ long-term care facilities because the Institute believes this is a matter of obvious importance, both on principle (the public has a right to know the facts), and for purposes of evaluating – and where possible improving – public policy. 

Ana Rijal is a Wellesley Freedom Project intern for Pioneer Institute. She is a rising junior studying Psychology and Philosophy.