LIRR workers are doing pretty well with overtime wages at the struggling rail system.
NEW YORK (AP) — Long Island Rail Road fares will go up this month to close a yawning budget gap at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
But a newspaper reported Sunday that the cash-strapped railroad paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in overtime to some train repairmen last year.
The New York Post says payroll records show six mechanics with base salaries around $62,000 each earned more than $200,000 in 2008.
An LIRR spokesman attributes the steep overtime payments to union contracts.
LIRR finances also came under scrutiny last year. The New York Times reported that more than 90 percent of LIRR retirees applied for disability benefits, and nearly 98 percent were approved by an obscure federal board, generating an average of $26,000 annually for each retiree.
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Information from: New York Post, http://www.nypost.com
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
