Dear Nozzlehead: I am really angry and concerned that the actions of a few are hurting many of us. Have you seen the headlines about the firefighters who are abusing sick time? The ones screwing up pensions for the rest of us? The ones who are supposedly “hurt” on their job but are then found doing all sorts of activities? The way I see it: If you’re hurt and collect an injury-related pension, then you damn well better be hurt. It’s disgusting how a few are making the rest of us suffer, as our pensions and benefits are now under attack. What should be done about this?
–Concerned in Connecticut
Dear Concerned,
This reminds me of the “Taxi” episode where “Rev Jim” is taking his driver’s license exam. With his friends trying to be inconspicuous in the room, Jim whispers, “What does a yellow light mean?” and his friends whisper, “SLOW DOWN.” And Jim says, “uhh … ummm … OK … whaaaaat doooooes a yeeeeelllloooowww liiiiiight meeeeeean?” His friends again repeat, “SLOW DOWN,” to which Jim of course just repeats the question even slower–a classic misinterpretation where Jim fails to take a moment to simply THINK about what he asked–and what the answer might be.
So to you, Concerned in Connecticut, I say SLOW DOWN. In other words, make sure you have the facts before going nuts (not that we in this business have ever had a history of jumping to conclusions without the facts–NEVER!). It’s kinda like the media today with the instant “news” provided via social media–rarely are the facts actually explored. So let’s explore.
Clearly, there are some clowns in bunker gear who have abused the system, stealing and ripping off the taxpayers, which ultimately hurts us as well. That’s been proven by terminations, charges and related punishments. My concern, though, is how quickly we in this “business of brotherhood” eat our own at the slightest bit of gossip or rumor.
One of my favorite terms is BMA: Brotherhood My Ass–meaning that we don’t always live the concept of brotherhood. Sometimes it’s best to remember that each of us may have our turn in the barrel at some point in our career. So maybe we need to press pause and think about how we’re treating the person who’s IN the barrel right now. Hmmm … treat others as we want to be …. You get the idea.
A newspaper known for its quality in wrapping fish recently took the issue of pension and sick-time abuse to task–without all the facts. In this day and age, when each taxpayer is worried about taking care of themselves and their loved ones, the readers usually DO NOT press pause to make sure they understand the facts, often because they see “us” getting something that they don’t get. And how dare we!
The fire commissioner in that city promised to call back retired firefighters for medical reviews if questions arose about the legitimacy of their tax-free disability pensions. As stated, “If somebody didn’t get a disability who thought they should get a disability, we would bring them back and let them run through it to see if they deserve it, and the same if somebody got it–like the stories we’ve seen in the paper–we would bring them back, and we would look at it.”
What else could the commissioner say? After all, he must respond.
The “fish wrapper” article included several examples of the type of abuse you’ve noted: the 42-year-old firefighter who worked at Ground Zero, retired with asthma and other ailments, and is now collecting $74,624 a year while participating in mixed-martial-arts matches; and a retired fire officer who’s competing in marathons and triathlons while receiving an $86,000-a-year pension for lung disease.
One politician called for a “crackdown on abuses” because 7 in 10 firefighters have been retiring on disability pensions, costing the cash-strapped city millions upon millions. But another politician said that officials looking to balance the budget are looking in the wrong place. “There is a lot of fat to trim in the budget,” said one elected official. “But looking to beat up on teachers, firefighters and cops is the wrong place to look.”
Then there’s the fire department out West where certain members were investigated by the FBI for conspiring to use their sick time in a way that drastically increased overtime payments in 2009, with 15 to 20 firefighters involved in the scandal. Some of the firefighters were accused of using e-mail and formal calendars to track how they would abuse the sick leave system.
It’s enough to make us jump to conclusions!
Even in a case as seemingly clear cut as the one out West, as of this writing, the situation is still unfolding, and two members of the department have been reinstated–with full back pay.
And consider the fact that a firefighter could be granted a very justifiable physical disability pension and still perform physically, but not mentally. Speak to anyone who spent real time at the World Trade Center and you’ll understand. Such firefighters are definitely incapable of performing all aspects of the job. They earned a pension–one that almost none of them really want, as most would rather be back in their firehouses. But they cannot be there any longer, as doing so could harm them (and others) even further.
Does it look bad when a career firefighter retires on disability, but then volunteers at their local fire company to help with training, command support, etc.? Sure–when we don’t understand THE FACTS. And today, with as fast as miscommunication flows on the “www,” it has somehow become easy to NOT pursue the facts, even though they are right at our fingertips.
In almost all cases, pension boards are legally accountable for their actions. When questioned, they should be able to clearly justify their decisions. But taxpayers, especially those suffering in this economy, simply don’t want to hear it, and it’s up to sensible elected officials, as well as labor organizations, to help get the factual messages out–all while making sure that there is zero tolerance toward any system abuses that might exist.
And as far as those who have maliciously and intentionally manipulated the system to earn more than most of us ever will? Shame on ’em. BMA.
