Overtime? Or Overpaid?

The Baltimore Sun published an article this week that spotlighted the amount of money the Baltimore City School System has paid employees in overtime over the past four years. My initial reaction to the steep figure, which is $14 million dollars, was relatively neutral. With 10,800 employees, you figure that overtime costs are inevitable.

However, as I continued reading I was completely shocked to discover that the top overtime earner in 2011 was Ralph Askins – Dr. Alonso’s driver. Askins “more than doubled his $76,816 wages, logging roughly $78,000 in overtime last year.” I actually had to take an extra couple of seconds to process these numbers. Am I missing something? Alonso’s chauffeur, who does also provide security, makes more money than Gov. Martin O’Malley and the highest-paid educator in any city school.

So, what are the Baltimore City Public Schools officials saying about this? Tisha Edwards commented about the overtime figures and made valid points about overtime being necessary at times to keep students safe, fill gaps and support the operations department. She also said that while overtime is an “expected expense for the system,” they are going to make sure that “those dollars are always being scrutinized.”

Askins declined to comment, which makes the situation that much more unclear to me. While I can understand Alonso’s need for some form of security working in the tougher parts of the city after hours, the amount of money Askin is making seems somewhat absurd! I would have liked to hear what the driver had to say about his salary and overtime figures in hopes of gaining some clarity. Until then, I can only hope that Edwards’ promise to scrutinize overtime spending will hold true.