By Diane Madigan
After several questions about the 2014 Van Buren Township transparency report and actual cost to the township, we thought we would go into further detail on the benefits column. This column combines the township’s costs paid by the township for employee benefits.
Health Care premium costs, which include a dental plan for all full-time employees and elected officials, range from $8,000 for a single policy to $24,000 for a family plan. The township also pays into a health care cost-reduction plan, AMERA, that runs $120 per year per employee. Those employees and officials that opt-out of health care receive $200 a month.
Vision: All full-time employees and elected officials receive vision coverage. Vision costs between $146.70 for a single policy to $293.40 for a family plan per year.
Life Insurance: Premiums cost between $57.60 for part-time trustees to $912 for the supervisor with an average of about $700. The fire department has a department life insurance plan. The annual premium when averaged over the current number of fire-fighters comes to $30.89.
Pensions The Township pays 12% of net wages for police in a union pension plan. For full-time employees and elected officials the township pays 12% into a 401K type savings plan. Firefighters get 6%.
FICA. The township is required to pay 6.2% for Social Security and 1.5 % for Medicare. The employee pays an equal amount. The township does not pay Social Security for fire fighters, just Medicare.
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Editor’s Note: Diane Madigan compiled the Van Buren Township salary report printed Feb. 19 from the 155 pages of documents supplied by Van Buren Township as its response to the Independent’s Freedom of Information Act request. The township does not have the salary information in one, easy list or digitally. All the details had to be compiled, added up, and typed into their final form by Madigan. This was a time-consuming labor of love to get the information together for the taxpayers and we thank Diane Madigan for her work.
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7 Comments
Weather
I dont find anything wrong with being paid to do to jobs that they go out everyday and risk there lives. they deserve high pay.
How about being paid when they abandon their posts, call in sick ,are on vacation , or are off taking comp time. You still think they should be paid double or triple time for working as a fire fighter on those days? They shouldn’t be paid anymore than the other fire fighters that are doing the same job.
Fatigue puts the township at risk.
Agreed Diane. Fraudulent pay and earning an honest days pay are very different things. The above poster probably isn’t aware of the allegations currently unanswered by the township board or Director of Public Safety.
With the issues going on over the Visteon Bond and the disasterous payroll, does this alarm anyone that we are relying on the public to do this research? What are we paying the township supervisor, treasury, clerk and trustees for?
Mark,
The Board doesn’t want to deal with blended rate or this officer that manipulates system. As the supposed supervisor of the Detective Bureau, he prefers to call in sick, take comp time, personal time and vacation time so he can get triple pay “working” in the fire department. He has found the loopholes and takes advantage of them and our safety.
Heck, the township even gives him a take home car with free fuel, and maintenance to abandon his post for hours at a time. This man needs to fired as well as Laurain and Besson
I guess it is time as a community to come together and demand change. I’ll be at the next board meeting with many questions (I’m an attorney and this comes as second nature). Look forward to asking the questions that many of us would like to know. I for one don’t like paying for someone to not be on the job, and even more so at this ridiculous rate. That’s almost as much as I charge.
It just makes me sick to think that some sleaze ball is getting away with making this much money and nowhere to be found. The same sleaze ball has never followed up with my mother on a break-in 3 years ago at her home in the township. He can’t be worth that much money if he doesn’t do his job and follow up with victims. Even if there is no new evidence or info at least return the messages. They will not get my millage vote. This township is a joke and criminals know it.