Overtime pay in New York City represents a significant portion of the municipal budget, particularly for uniformed services and skilled trade employees who receive compensation beyond their base salaries. This page covers CBC’s work on uniformed overtime trends, contractual and staffing reforms, labor-management productivity strategies, overtime caps, and the fiscal impact of overtime spending on city and MTA budgets.
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The Administration should break its severe underbudgeting habit and provide credible spending estimates, including for overtime, housing vouchers, and homeless shelters.
The City should increase the budget for uniformed overtime to the actual levels historically reached.
The City should develop a plan to drastically reduce spending on uniformed overtime to the level currently budgeted if it chooses not to increase the budget.
The City must implement significant managerial controls to keep uniformed overtime closer to budgeted levels this year and next.
The City needs to rein in overtime spending to avoid exceeding the budget.
Key Data
In January 2025, the CBC estimated that the City's fiscal year 2025 budget remained underbudgeted by $700 million, with the shortfall largely driven by underfunded overtime costs.
In May 2023, the CBC projected that the NYPD's fiscal year 2023 overtime spending would reach $817 million, exceeding its adopted budget by $364 million (or 80%).
In November 2022, the CBC identified that higher overtime spending and other fiscal risks could increase the MTA's deficit by $220 million in 2022, $800 million in 2023, and $1 billion by 2026.
In September 2020, the CBC highlighted that paramedic overtime hours at the FDNY increased 50% between fiscal year 2014 and fiscal year 2019, rising to 317,516 hours worked by 845 paramedics.
In September 2020, the CBC reported that uniformed overtime was $1.1 billion in fiscal year 2019, while employees in skilled trades earned about $100 million in overtime.
With New York City spending $2.3 billion more than it received over the past three years, addressing persistent growth in overtime spending through improved management, civilianization, and technology offers a critical opportunity for reform. Managing these costs is essential to closing budget gaps and achieving long-term fiscal sustainability without increasing the tax burden.
Recommendations related to Overtime
Persistent growth in overtime spending continues to present an opportunity for thoughtful reform through improved management, civilianization, and technology.
New York City mayoral candidates were asked to address the city's reliance on uniformed overtime, with most supporting measures such as hard caps, the elimination of unlimited sick leave, and the exclusion of overtime from pension calculations. While some candidates proposed hiring additional staff to reduce overtime dependence, others emphasized the need for better scheduling and management to curb excessive spending.
Recommendations related to Overtime
Candidates should support a hard overtime cap to control costs.
Candidates should support the elimination of unlimited sick leave to reduce fiscal waste.
Candidates should support the exclusion of most overtime earnings from pension calculations to prevent pension spiking.
Candidates should staff agencies up to budgeted headcount to reduce dependence on overtime.
Candidates should hire additional officers to reduce the need for excessive overtime.
Candidates should redirect overtime funds into youth jobs, housing, and health.
Candidates should implement smarter staffing and scheduling to address overtime issues.
Candidates should curtail the amount the city pays in overtime to solve recruitment and retention crises.
Candidates should support overtime restrictions for agencies with full staff.
Candidates should cut excessive overtime through better staffing rather than gutting rights or pensions.
Key Data
$682 Million
— Estimate of annual overtime underbudgeting embedded in the FY2026–FY2029 plan.
$758 Million
— FY2025 overtime underbudgeting.
$1.1 Billion
— FY2024 uniformed‑agency overtime budget that was fully spent in 7 months.
The City's fiscal year 2025 budget remains underbudgeted by $700 million, a shortfall largely driven by overtime expenses. The Administration must abandon its habit of severe underbudgeting and provide more credible spending estimates for critical areas like overtime.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The Administration should break its severe underbudgeting habit and provide credible spending estimates, including for overtime, housing vouchers, and homeless shelters.
Key Data
$700 million
— The amount by which fiscal year 2025 remains underbudgeted, largely for <b>overtime</b>.
New York City's adopted budget must address unprecedented levels of underbudgeting by transparently and accurately reflecting the actual costs of planned programs and expenses like overtime. Ensuring these costs are fully funded will prevent artificial gap reductions and foster a more honest debate about the city's fiscal priorities.
Recommendations related to Overtime
To foster a fact-based debate and prioritization of programs, the budget should be transparent and accurately reflect the costs of planned programs and additional expenses that are currently underbudgeted, such as overtime.
New York City consistently underbudgets for uniformed personnel overtime, contributing to structural budget gaps that require significant fiscal adjustments. Addressing these chronic shortfalls is essential for achieving long-term financial stability and ensuring that budgeted amounts align with historical spending realities.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The City should increase the budget for uniformed overtime to the actual levels historically reached.
The City should develop a plan to drastically reduce spending on uniformed overtime to the level currently budgeted if it chooses not to increase the budget.
Key Data
$610 Million
— FY2024 uniformed overtime underbudgeting.
$535 Million
— FY2025 uniformed overtime underbudgeting.
$535 Million
— FY2026 uniformed overtime underbudgeting.
$535 Million
— FY2027 uniformed overtime underbudgeting.
New York City faces a significant fiscal cliff with projected budget gaps reaching up to $13.8 billion, driven by increased spending on programs and services that often exceed budget allocations, including overtime. To address this, the city must prioritize impactful programs, improve operational efficiency, and manage headcount to ensure long-term fiscal stability.
The NYPD's fiscal year 2024 executive budget significantly understates necessary spending by failing to include realistic overtime projections and costs associated with recent collective bargaining agreements. This underbudgeting continues a pattern of unrealistic fiscal planning, with overtime spending in fiscal year 2023 projected to exceed the adopted budget by 80 percent.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The NYPD should ensure that budgeted overtime reflects reasonable expectations given management, policy, and history.
The City should increase the NYPD overtime budget to align with historical spending trends and avoid unrealistic underbudgeting.
Key Data
$817 million
— Projected total NYPD overtime spending for fiscal year 2023.
$453 million
— The adopted NYPD overtime budget for fiscal year 2023.
$364 million
— The amount by which fiscal year 2023 overtime spending is estimated to exceed the adopted budget.
$452 million
— The fiscal year 2024 executive budget allocation for NYPD overtime.
$250 million
— The amount by which the fiscal year 2023 overtime budget is currently estimated to be short.
80 percent
— The percentage by which fiscal year 2023 overtime spending is projected to exceed the adopted budget.
NYCHA continues to struggle with high operating costs, driven in part by persistent overtime spending that rose to $152 million in 2022 despite efforts to reduce it by 40 percent. These elevated personnel costs, alongside flagging rent collection and deferred maintenance, have forced the agency to rely heavily on non-recurring revenue and subsidies to balance its budget.
Recommendations related to Overtime
NYCHA should negotiate savings and increased productivity through collective bargaining to address high overtime use.
Key Data
40 percent
— The goal set by NYCHA to reduce overtime costs in 2022.
3 percent
— The rate at which overtime spending increased in 2022 despite reduction efforts.
$152 million
— The total amount of overtime spending reached by NYCHA in 2022.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority faces significant fiscal risks, including higher-than-expected overtime spending, which could contribute to annual deficits of up to $1 billion by 2026. These budgetary pressures, compounded by lower ridership and potential economic downturns, threaten the transit system's long-term financial stability.
The NYPD's overtime budget is increasing by $94 million in fiscal year 2022 and $18 million annually from 2023 to 2026, yet these funds are likely insufficient without significant operational changes. Meaningful, long-term reductions in overtime spending depend on implementing effective managerial controls and revising department policies and procedures.
Recommendations related to Overtime
Meaningful recurring reductions in NYPD overtime depend on effective managerial controls.
Meaningful recurring reductions in NYPD overtime depend on changes to NYPD policies and procedures.
Key Data
$743 million
— Estimated total NYPD overtime spending by the end of fiscal year 2022.
$617 million
— NYPD overtime expenditures through April of fiscal year 2022.
$136 million
— The amount by which estimated fiscal year 2022 overtime spending exceeds the newly modified Executive Budget.
$94 million
— The increase in the NYPD overtime budget for fiscal year 2022 compared to the Preliminary Budget.
$524 million
— The fiscal year 2022 uniformed overtime budget.
$372 million
— The fiscal year 2023 uniformed overtime budget.
The NYPD is projected to exceed its fiscal year 2022 overtime budget by over $200 million, with spending potentially reaching $742 million compared to the $513 million budgeted. To address this, significant managerial controls are required to align uniformed overtime spending with the $434 million allocated for fiscal year 2023.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The City must implement significant managerial controls to keep uniformed overtime closer to budgeted levels this year and next.
The City needs to rein in overtime spending to avoid exceeding the budget.
Key Data
$200 million
— Amount by which the NYPD is likely to exceed its fiscal year 2022 overtime budget.
$513 million
— The fiscal year 2022 overtime budget.
$477 million
— Amount spent on overtime through February 20, 2022.
$742 million
— Projected fiscal year 2022 overtime spending.
$434 million
— The fiscal year 2023 overtime budget.
The New York City Police Department is on track to exceed its fiscal year 2022 overtime budget by $258 million, with projected spending reaching $742 million. To address this, significant managerial controls are required to keep uniformed overtime spending closer to budgeted levels for the current and upcoming fiscal years.
Recommendations related to Overtime
Significant managerial controls will be necessary to keep uniformed overtime closer to budgeted levels this year and next.
Key Data
$742 million
— Projected total overtime spending for fiscal year 2022 if current spending rates continue.
$258 million
— Potential amount by which fiscal year 2022 overtime spending could exceed its budget.
$432 million
— Total fiscal year 2022 uniformed overtime budget after a $76 million increase.
$416 million
— Actual uniformed overtime spending through February 20, 2022.
$354 million
— Fiscal year 2023 budget allocation for uniformed overtime.
$81 million
— Fiscal year 2022 civilian overtime budget.
The city can achieve more than a billion dollars in efficiency savings by modernizing labor agreements, including renegotiating provisions for work hours, leave, and overtime. By streamlining centralized functions and updating outdated work rules, the city can improve operational efficiency and reduce costs without sacrificing essential services.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The city and unions should modify some of the Citywide Agreement provisions for work hours, vacation and sick leave, overtime, and other benefits common across nonuniformed collective bargaining units.
The New York Police Department failed to meet its goal of reducing overtime spending, resulting in $474 million in expenditures for fiscal year 2021. This figure exceeded the budgeted amount by $206 million, or 77 percent, despite an initial plan to lower costs from the previous year's $837 million.
Key Data
$474 million
— Fiscal year 2021 overtime expenditures.
$206 million
— Amount by which fiscal year 2021 overtime expenditures exceeded the budget.
77 percent
— Percentage by which fiscal year 2021 overtime expenditures exceeded the budget.
$837 million
— Fiscal year 2020 overtime spending.
$268 million
— Planned fiscal year 2021 overtime spending target.
The NYPD's fiscal year 2021 overtime budget of $268 million was significantly exceeded, with spending projected to reach $448 million by year-end. While the fiscal year 2022 budget allocates $434 million for overtime, historical trends and the resumption of city activities suggest this target will be difficult to achieve without diligent management.
Key Data
$268 million
— The adopted fiscal year 2021 overtime budget.
$418 million
— The amount NYPD had already spent on overtime through June 10, 2021.
$448 million
— The projected total fiscal year 2021 overtime spending.
$434 million
— The budgeted amount for fiscal year 2022 overtime.
$714 million
— The average annual overtime spending over the prior seven years.
$174 million
— The amount of uniformed overtime in fiscal year 2017 attributed to events, representing 30 percent of the total.
The City's fiscal plan relies on cutting overtime spending by half compared to the previous year, a goal that remains questionable without structural changes. Achieving these significant reductions in overtime costs likely requires implementing specific contractual or staffing reforms rather than relying on optimistic projections.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The City should implement contractual or staffing reforms to achieve the projected reductions in overtime spending.
Key Data
$927 million
— Projected overtime spending in the Adopted Budget for fiscal year 2021.
$410 million
— Amount of overtime spending incurred through October.
44 percent
— Portion of the Adopted Budget amount spent on overtime through October.
New York City faces a significant fiscal crisis that necessitates labor savings to avoid widespread layoffs. The City should implement reforms such as extending overtime caps to skilled trades and uniformed employees, rationalizing health insurance benefits, and modernizing work rules to achieve recurring savings.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The City should reduce overtime for skilled trades and uniformed employees through the implementation of overtime caps.
The City should implement greater flexibility to assign employees and ask them to perform duties out of their job description for temporary assignments to reduce the need for overtime.
The City should make four firefighters the standard staffing for engine companies to reduce reliance on overtime.
The City should be given the flexibility to shift at least half of the ALS ambulances to a one paramedic, one EMT staffing model to reduce paramedic overtime.
The City should reduce overtime hours to generate substantial savings.
Key Data
$1.1 Billion
— Uniformed overtime in fiscal year 2019.
$360 Million
— Overtime earned by uniformed and skilled trade employees in excess of 15 percent of their salaries in fiscal year 2019.
50 percent
— Increase in paramedic overtime hours from fiscal year 2014 to fiscal year 2019.
$100 Million
— Overtime earned by employees in skilled trades.
234
— Average overtime hours worked by uniform employees.
$16,000
— Average overtime earnings for uniform employees.
New York City should implement overtime caps for uniformed and skilled trade employees to address rising costs, as uniformed overtime alone reached $1.1 billion in fiscal year 2019. Additionally, modifying staffing models for ambulances could reduce paramedic overtime, which increased by 50 percent between fiscal years 2014 and 2019.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The City should reduce overtime for skilled trades and uniformed employees through the implementation of overtime caps.
The City should be given the flexibility to shift at least half of the ALS ambulances to a one paramedic, one EMT staffing model, which could cause paramedic overtime hours to decrease.
The City should focus on reducing the overtime hours for uniformed and skilled trade employees to generate substantial savings.
Key Data
$1.1 billion
— Uniformed overtime spending in fiscal year 2019.
$360 million
— Overtime earned by uniformed and skilled trade employees in fiscal year 2019 that was in excess of 15 percent of their salaries.
50 percent
— Increase in paramedic overtime hours from fiscal year 2014 to fiscal year 2019.
$100 million
— Overtime earned by employees in skilled trades.
$19,000
— Average annual overtime earnings for employees in the trades.
$16,000
— Average annual overtime earnings for uniform employees.
The NYPD's fiscal year 2021 budget includes a $354 million reduction in overtime expenses, which represents 75 percent of the total budget reduction. These savings are considered unrealistic because they lack a concrete operational strategy and rely on steep cuts that would require far-reaching reforms and labor union negotiations.
Recommendations related to Overtime
To achieve the steep reduction currently budgeted, overtime reforms would need to be far-reaching and potentially negotiated with labor unions.
The City should ensure that any future reductions in overtime expenses are accompanied by a plan or operational strategy.
Key Data
$354 million
— The amount of the reduction in overtime expenses, which accounts for 75 percent of the total budget reduction.
56 percent
— The budgeted overtime reduction compared to the Executive Budget for fiscal year 2021.
67 percent
— The decline in overtime from fiscal year 2020 to the fiscal year 2021 adopted budget.
25 to 30 percent
— The portion of all uniformed police overtime spending comprised of events like parades in recent years.
$679 million
— The amount of uniformed overtime spending in fiscal year 2020.
$227 million
— The amount of uniformed overtime spending in fiscal year 2021.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority faces a severe fiscal crisis exacerbated by the pandemic, requiring a strategic combination of operational efficiencies, capital project prioritization, and potential fare and toll adjustments to ensure financial stability. To address these budget gaps, the authority must implement structural changes, including managing staff levels and overtime costs, while balancing service levels with current ridership demands.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The MTA should restart the Transformation Plan to achieve savings by better managing staff levels and overtime.
The MTA should implement operational changes, such as changes to bus driver schedules to reduce overtime, to achieve greater efficiencies.
Key Data
$500 million
— Annual savings sought by the Transformation Plan, which includes measures to reduce spending by better managing staff levels and overtime.
The fiscal year 2021 budget relies on the successful implementation of a $350 million reduction in overtime at the New York City Police Department to maintain flat city-funded spending. Achieving this savings target is a critical step in managing the city's financial plan during the ongoing economic crisis.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The City must ensure that the $350 million reduction in overtime at the New York City Police Department is successfully implemented.
City leaders must prioritize negotiating and managing the changes necessary to achieve the assumed savings, including the planned reductions in overtime.
Key Data
$350 million
— The reduction in overtime at the New York City Police Department that the fiscal year 2021 budget relies on to keep spending flat.
The fiscal year 2021 budget for New York City relies on questionable savings, including a planned reduction in police overtime of nearly $300 million that is unlikely to be realized given historical management trends. This budget approach fails to address long-term fiscal gaps, leaving the city vulnerable to future service reductions and layoffs.
Key Data
$300 million
— The amount by which the city plans to reduce police overtime, which is considered highly unlikely to be achieved.
The NYPD's budget includes significant expenditures on overtime, which totaled $635 million in fiscal year 2020 and accounted for 44 percent of all citywide overtime spending. This overtime, combined with base and supplemental pay, contributed to an average total compensation for full-time employees of $96,072 in fiscal year 2019.
Key Data
$635 million
— The total amount spent on NYPD overtime in fiscal year 2020.
44 percent
— The share of all citywide overtime spending that was attributed to the NYPD in fiscal year 2020.
$96,072
— The average total pay for a full-time NYPD employee in fiscal year 2019, which includes base pay, overtime, and supplemental pay.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's new labor contract with the Transport Workers Union aims to reduce annual overtime costs by $17 million through voluntary shift swaps and improved employee availability. However, these projected savings rely on behavioral changes, and failure to realize them could exacerbate the agency's multi-million dollar budget shortfall.
Recommendations related to Overtime
To keep the financial plan impact neutral, the agreements should include greater savings, including workrule changes, to offset the impact of these increased costs.
The MTA should establish productivity targets and provide public quarterly reports on savings to ensure accountability.
Similar committees should be established with other unions if workrule changes are not directly negotiated in the other collective bargaining agreements.
Key Data
$17 million
— The MTA assumes that voluntary shift swaps will reduce annual overtime costs by this amount.
55,500 days
— The proposed availability savings of this many days for 37,000 employees would be offset by more than half if 1.6 percent of workers take advantage of Paid Family Medical Leave.
1.6 percent
— The number of shifts that would need to be filled if this percentage of workers take advantage of Paid Family Medical Leave would offset more than half of the proposed availability savings.
37,000 employees
— The proposed availability savings of 55,500 days applies to this many employees.
Between fiscal years 2014 and 2019, total uniformed overtime in New York City grew from $973 million to $1.1 billion, accounting for approximately two-thirds of the city's total overtime expenses. While some uniformed titles saw declines in average overtime pay, others experienced increases, contributing to the complex trends in city employee compensation.
Key Data
$1.1 billion
— Total uniformed overtime in fiscal year 2019.
$973 million
— Total uniformed overtime in fiscal year 2014.
8.6%
— Annual increase in overtime pay for traffic enforcement agents.
1.2%
— Annual decline in total average uniformed overtime pay for four common uniformed positions between fiscal years 2014 and 2019.
6.6%
— Average annual rate of decline in overtime pay for firefighters.
2.2%
— Annual increase in overtime pay for police officers.
In fiscal year 2019, uniformed New York City employees earned an average of $14,000 to $23,000 annually in overtime pay. Additionally, civilian employees in several agencies, such as the Departments of Transportation and Correction, averaged over $10,000 in annual overtime earnings.
Key Data
$14,000 and $23,000
— Average annual overtime earnings for uniformed employees in fiscal year 2019.
$10,000
— Average annual overtime for civilians in several agencies, including the Departments of Transportation, Correction, Citywide Administrative Services, and Fire.
The 2019 Benefit Sweetener Scorecard tracks 189 legislative bills, including several that would impact overtime compensation, mandatory overtime requirements, and overtime pay for federal holidays. These bills propose changes to how overtime is calculated in final average salary determinations and how it is mandated or compensated for public employees.
The 2019 Benefit Sweetener Scorecard tracks 189 legislative bills that would expand public employee benefits, including several proposals that would alter overtime compensation rules or prohibit mandatory overtime. These legislative efforts, if enacted, would increase costs for the state and local employers by expanding pension, disability, and leave benefits.
Key Data
15% to 30%
— Proposed increase in the limitation of overtime compensation in final average salary calculations.
The appointment of a federal monitor for the New York City Housing Authority presents an opportunity to improve operations by implementing ambitious performance goals and advocating for federal policy changes. To enhance productivity and address physical deficiencies, the monitor should prioritize labor reforms, such as scheduling evening and weekend shifts and utilizing private maintenance contracts to reduce reliance on overtime.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The monitor should encourage scheduling shifts on evenings and weekends to speed up repair work and reduce the need for overtime.
NYCHA should utilize private maintenance contracts to speed up repair work and further reduce the need for overtime among skilled trade staff.
NYCHA should pursue labor reforms to boost productivity, as the skilled trades currently earn a disproportionate share of NYCHA’s overtime budget each year.
In fiscal year 2018, uniformed New York City employees earned between $15,000 and $23,000 annually in overtime, significantly contributing to their higher total compensation compared to civilian and pedagogical staff. While uniformed employees receive the highest overtime payments, civilian staff in agencies like the Departments of Transportation and Correction also average over $10,000 in annual overtime pay.
Key Data
$15,000 and $23,000
— Average annual overtime earnings for uniformed employees.
$10,000
— Average annual overtime for civilian employees in several agencies, including the Departments of Transportation, Correction, Citywide Administrative Services, and Fire.
Uniformed overtime accounts for over two-thirds of New York City's overtime spending, with uniformed employees earning an average of $19,400 in overtime pay during fiscal year 2016. Despite increased staffing levels, departments like the FDNY and DOC continue to exceed overtime caps, necessitating negotiated work rule changes and reforms to the current unlimited sick leave policy to address the root causes of these costs.
Recommendations related to Overtime
Labor and management must come to the table to develop better strategies to control uniformed overtime costs.
The high rate of absenteeism should be tackled with a comprehensive strategy and changes to the sick leave policy, which currently grants unlimited sick time to uniformed employees.
Work rule changes will need to be negotiated in the next round of labor contracts to address the root causes of excessive overtime.
Key Data
$1.2 billion
— Total uniformed overtime earned by employees in fiscal year 2016.
$19,400
— Average overtime earned per uniformed employee in fiscal year 2016.
53 percent
— Portion of the uniformed workforce earning overtime pay in excess of 20 percent of base salary.
$506 million
— The fiscal year 2018 cap for NYPD uniformed overtime.
$272 million
— Uniformed overtime spending at the FDNY in fiscal year 2017.
$240 million
— Uniformed overtime spending at the DOC in fiscal year 2017.
The Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) exhibits significant operational inefficiencies compared to the Metro-North Railroad, with LIRR overtime per position being 49 percent higher and total overtime expenses reaching $130 million in 2017. To address these disparities, management should pursue productivity reforms, such as standardizing work rules and implementing split-shift scheduling, which could yield substantial annual savings.
Recommendations related to Overtime
MTA management should begin identifying its agenda for improved productivity.
The MTA should standardize work rules across the two railroads to help generate savings.
The MTA should implement split-shift scheduling for LIRR crews to reduce overtime costs.
Key Data
49%
— The amount by which overtime per position at the LIRR was greater than at Metro-North.
$130 million
— The total overtime expenses for the LIRR in 2017.
$92 million
— The total overtime expenses for the Metro-North Railroad in 2017.
$13 million
— The estimated annual savings from applying split-shift scheduling to the LIRR.
2.2 million
— The number of hours in LIRR overtime in 2017.
1.6 million
— The number of hours in Metro-North overtime in 2017.
New York City's uniformed overtime spending has grown significantly, reaching $1.7 billion in fiscal year 2016, with uniformed employees accounting for two-thirds of all overtime costs. To address this fiscal challenge, the City should implement structural reforms, including labor-management committees, caps on sick leave, and changes to work rules that currently drive excessive overtime.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The City should establish a uniformed labor-management committee as part of the next round of collective bargaining in order to reduce uniformed overtime spending.
The City should adopt a system in which routine sick leave usage is accrued and capped to provide greater oversight.
The City should change certain work rules, such as eliminating overtime for travel to alternate work locations and guaranteed minimum overtime hours.
The City should consider instituting a per employee cap on overtime hours or overtime earnings, as exists for civilian employees.
The City should consider capping or eliminating overtime earnings in calculating final average salary for pensions.
Key Data
$1.7 billion
— Total overtime spending in fiscal year 2016.
$1.2 billion
— Annual uniformed overtime costs for fiscal years 2015 and 2016.
$19,400
— Average overtime compensation paid per uniformed employee in fiscal year 2016.
42%
— Average amount by which overtime spending exceeded the adopted budget in each of the past nine years.
62%
— Growth in total overtime spending from fiscal year 2009 to fiscal year 2016.
$1.8 billion
— Projected overtime spending for fiscal year 2017 as of June 2017.
New York City's fiscal plan includes initiatives to curb rising costs, specifically targeting overtime through caps on skilled trades and civilian waivers, alongside the creation of a centralized skilled trades pool to manage maintenance backlogs. These measures aim to generate millions in recurring savings by improving operational efficiency and reducing the reliance on expensive overtime hours.
Recommendations related to Overtime
City agencies should review their operations to enhance productivity and reduce expenses.
The Office of Management and Budget will work with agencies to exercise stricter review of waivers for civilian overtime.
Overtime for skilled trades, including positions such as master electrician, master plumber, and welder, will be capped at 12 percent of straight-time hours and at 50 percent of an employee’s base salary.
A Centralized Skilled Trades Pool will be established to more nimbly deploy personnel to address temporary maintenance backlogs, alleviating the need for overtime.
The city should consider reinstating mandatory savings requirements for agencies to address limited participation in voluntary programs.
Key Data
$10 million
— Skilled Trades Overtime savings in FY2018.
$40 million
— Four-year total savings from Skilled Trades Overtime initiatives.
$4 million
— Civilian Overtime Waivers Cap savings in FY2018.
$28 million
— Four-year total savings from Civilian Overtime Waivers Cap.
$14 million
— Initial annual savings from the Centralized Skilled Trades Pool.
$28 million
— Annual savings from the Centralized Skilled Trades Pool once fully established.
Uniformed employees in New York City agencies earn between $12,000 and $28,000 annually in overtime, which significantly drives their high total earnings. Additionally, civilian employees in several city agencies, including the Departments of Transportation and Correction, average over $10,000 in annual overtime pay.
Key Data
$12,000
— Average annual overtime earnings for uniformed employees.
$28,000
— Average annual overtime earnings for uniformed employees.
$10,000
— Average annual overtime earnings for civilian employees in several agencies.
The fiscal year 2018 preliminary budget proposes spending $87.1 billion, with significant expenditure growth driven by challenges in managing homelessness and the reliance on overtime among city agencies. Upcoming budget deliberations should prioritize strategies to better manage agencies experiencing this significant expenditure growth.
The NYC Preliminary Budget for FY2018 raises critical questions regarding fiscal management, including whether overtime spending will exceed established caps for the New York City Police Department. The budget outlook also hinges on potential revisions to tax revenue projections, the size of the Citywide Savings Program, and the funding requirements for homeless shelters, which have a census surpassing 60,000 and funding needs exceeding $1.5 billion.
New York City's overtime costs reached a record $1.4 billion for all agencies in fiscal year 2015, despite agreements to limit expenditures in exchange for increasing the police force size. Current projections indicate that overtime expenses may exceed the city's forecast by $136 million in fiscal 2016 and $221 million in fiscal 2017.
Key Data
$1.4 billion
— Record overtime costs for all agencies in fiscal year 2015
$136 million
— Potential for overtime expenses to surpass the city’s forecast in fiscal 2016
$221 million
— Potential for overtime expenses to surpass the city’s forecast in fiscal 2017
The FDNY is currently relying on temporary overtime to cover ambulance tours following the bankruptcy of a private provider, but this approach fails to address the long-term need for structural changes. To improve efficiency and capacity, the department should reallocate resources by modifying ambulance staffing models and increasing medical training for firefighters to handle more incidents independently.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The FDNY should modify Advanced Life Support (ALS) ambulance staffing to one paramedic and one emergency medical technician (EMT) for more efficient response.
The New York City Regional Emergency Medical Service Council should approve the petition to modify ALS ambulance staffing from two paramedics to one paramedic and one EMT.
The FDNY should increase medical training for firefighters, allowing them to handle more emergencies without reliance on a subsequent ambulance and its staff.
Key Data
81
— Number of daily ambulance tours the city must cover following the bankruptcy of TransCare Ambulance.
75 percent
— Portion of the FDNY's workload comprised of medical incidents.
5 percent
— Portion of the FDNY's workload comprised of fire incidents.
56 percent
— Portion of the FDNY's budget spent on fire operations.
28 percent
— Portion of the FDNY's budget spent on medical service.
$5 million
— Estimated annual savings from modifying ALS ambulance staffing to one paramedic and one EMT.
The post provides an overview of the New York City Police Department's total expenses and headcount, with a specific emphasis on overtime costs. It serves as a factual summary of the department's financial and personnel data.
The New York City Police Department has struggled to control overtime expenses, which have risen significantly since 2000 and frequently exceed budgeted amounts. Hiring additional officers is unlikely to reduce these costs without a fundamental revision of existing overtime protocols and administrative restructuring.
Recommendations related to Overtime
New hiring will not assure a reduction in overtime expenditures without an accompanying revision of overtime protocols.
Negotiations should be focused on ways to control overtime.
The department should prioritize moving officers performing civilian roles to patrol.
The department should pursue administrative restructuring to increase efficiency.
Key Data
13.6%
— Share of the $4.6 billion NYPD budget accounted for by overtime in fiscal year 2013.
$237 million
— NYPD overtime expenditures in fiscal year 2000.
$635 million
— NYPD overtime expenditures in fiscal year 2013.
$5,900
— Overtime per uniformed employee in fiscal year 2000.
$18,000
— Overtime per uniformed employee in fiscal year 2013.
41%
— Average amount by which the NYPD exceeded its overtime budget over the five years preceding 2014.
New York City's heavy reliance on sanitation workers for snow removal leads to significant overtime expenses, with costs reaching $119.5 million in fiscal year 2011 and $55 million in fiscal year 2012. The city should diversify its snow removal workforce by utilizing other city employees and private contractors to reduce this reliance on DSNY overtime.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The City should utilize its list of pre-authorized private contractors to create a more efficient system for snow removal.
New York City should employ a mix of public employees outside DSNY and private contractors to serve as a reliable reserve force for snow removal.
The City should assign a more diverse group of workers, including employees from transportation, parks, and water agencies, to assist with snow removal.
Key Data
$119.5 million
— The amount of overtime accrued by DSNY during the fiscal year 2011 snow season.
$55 million
— The cost of overtime for DSNY during the fiscal year 2012 snow season, which included 6.8 inches of snow and a hurricane.
61.5 inches
— The amount of snowfall in New York City during fiscal year 2011.
6.8 inches
— The amount of snowfall in New York City during fiscal year 2012.
This presentation was given during CBC's Conference on The Most Important Economic and Fiscal Decisions Facing the Next Mayor , which took place on December 6, 2013.. CBC provides a framework for curbing expenditures effectively and provides 8 options for savings: Implementing health insurance premium-sharing; Consolidating union welfare funds;…
The proposed legislation mandating 80 hours of additional training for firefighters would cost the city $29.5 million, largely due to the necessity of paying overtime for staff to complete the training. This mandate would further increase pension costs, which are already projected to grow by 20 percent to over $8 billion by 2014.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The Governor should veto A9885/S6784 because it arbitrarily creates overtime in a department where overtime already regularly exceeds budget allocations.
The state should not mandate additional training requirements that force the City to incur unnecessary overtime costs.
Key Data
$29.5 million
— Estimated cost of the legislation requiring additional firefighter training.
$19 million
— Added wages and fringe benefits resulting from the training mandate.
20 percent
— Projected growth of pension costs in the City's budget.
The city spent more than $1 billion on overtime last year, with significant portions allocated to the Police and Fire Departments. Implementing better management of these costs, such as replacing overtime with regular scheduled workers, could save $165 million annually.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The city should better manage overtime to achieve savings of $165 million.
Much of the current overtime spending could be replaced with workers on regular schedules who are not paid the time-and-a-half rate.
The city should eliminate practices like having firefighters receive CPR training on overtime rather than as part of their regular schedule.
The city should address the structure of firefighter schedules, which currently have 96 hours of annual overtime built into their regular schedules.
Key Data
$1 billion
— Total spent on overtime by the city last year.
$505 million
— Amount spent on overtime in the Police Department.
$169 million
— Amount spent on overtime in the Fire Department.
96 hours
— Annual overtime built into firefighter regular schedules.
New York City's police department has seen overtime expenses rise significantly, reaching $610 million in fiscal year 2002, with a large portion unrelated to the September 11th attacks. To address this, the city should shift predictable duties from overtime to regular schedules and utilize technology to reduce the need for overtime in processing arrests.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The Police Department should stop using officers on overtime to perform duties that are predictable and could be scheduled in advance.
The City should convert activities now requiring overtime to “straight” time by adjusting officers’ schedules to include days reserved for availability when special events occur.
The Police Department should reduce overtime required to process arrests by better using information technology for these tasks.
The City should staff regularly scheduled drug enforcement activities as part of officers’ regular schedules rather than with officers on overtime.
Key Data
$114 million
— Police Department's overtime expenses in fiscal year 1995.
$353 million
— Police Department's overtime expenses in fiscal year 2001.
$610 million
— Police Department's overtime expenses in fiscal year 2002.
$347 million
— Portion of fiscal year 2002 overtime not related to the attacks on September 11, 2001.
$117 million
— Estimated annual savings from reducing police overtime through scheduling and technology adjustments.
New York City's reliance on excessive overtime, particularly within uniformed agencies, significantly inflates municipal costs and complicates pension calculations. Implementing reforms such as ending planned overtime and better managing staffing levels could yield substantial annual savings while improving service efficiency.
Recommendations related to Overtime
The Fire Department should end planned overtime to avoid paying time-and-a-half for work that can be anticipated and scheduled.
The City should reduce unnecessary overtime by better managing post coverage and tour changes to avoid paying premium rates for predictable staffing needs.
The City should eliminate the unnecessary fifth firefighter on engine companies, which would reduce staffing costs and overtime requirements.
The City should better match staffing levels to demand patterns to reduce the reliance on overtime during low-demand periods.
The City should reduce the high supervisory ratio in the Fire Department, which currently creates perverse incentives for overtime and promotion.
Key Data
$618 million
— Total cost of overtime for New York City in fiscal year 2000.
$237,303,000
— Overtime expenditures for the Police Department in fiscal year 2000.
$106,220,000
— Overtime expenditures for the Fire Department in fiscal year 2000.
$28.7 million
— Annual cost of roster staffing in the Fire Department.
$5.6 million
— Annual cost of Certified First Responder-Defibrillation training overtime in the Fire Department.
$20.8 million
— Potential annual savings from bringing firefighter absence rates down to police officer levels.
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