Clark County firefighters profit from sick leave policy

The Las Vegas Sun reports:

Clark County’s firefighters call in sick almost twice as often as rank-and-file county employees and at about four times the rate of management.

Those numbers, included in a county compensation study, have one commissioner claiming firefighters are gaming the system in an effort to accrue more overtime. Firefighters who call in sick are replaced by colleagues who are paid overtime.

“They have figured out how to play the system to their benefit and take advantage of every single opportunity in their contract to maximize their pay and minimize the benefit to the taxpayer,” Commissioner Steve Sisolak said.

The president of the firefighters union said the higher use of sick time by the union’s members was “news” to him.

Imagine that.