4 Taunton employees earned more than $300K. Here are the top 10 highest paid in 2022
TAUNTON — Which municipal employees made the most in Taunton in 2022? The Gazette analyzed salary data to find out.
As in the last time the gazette crunched the numbers, the list of top paid city employees is dominated by members of the Police and Fire departments.
A total of 2,350 people — including full-time, part-time, and temporary staff, like substitute teachers and election workers — were employed by the city in 2022.
Of the top 100 highest paid employees, 88 came from Police and Fire.
And the top 26 positions all made more than $200,000 last year.
And just because someone holds the top position in a department, that doesn’t mean that person is the top earner — after overtime is factored in.
Overtime and details make the difference
As in many other communities, overtime pay is a substantial chunk of the total for many of the highest earning employees.
This time around the list also includes paid details — public safety and security assignments for public events and worksites, such as roadways. It’s a separate form of compensation from overtime and can be a significant share of an officer's overall earnings.
Another big factor for a few top earners is payouts for retirees of unused sick and vacation time. More than half of what the top earner of 2022 made last year came from retiree payouts for unused sick and vacation time.
Here are the top 10 highest earners for the city of Taunton in 2022:
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Top 10 highest paid Taunton employees
Michael D. Sylvia — retired as deputy fire chief in 2022/current traffic control officer; $389,469 total, including $31,541 overtime, $18,904 detail, $195,642 in unused sick time and $26,968 in unused vacation time
Joseph D. Ryan — police officer; $357,874 total, including $170,193 overtime and $49,501 detail
Paul H. Taber — police lieutenant - $357,558 total, including $152,195 overtime and $41,449 detail.
Honorato M. Santos — police captain, field services; $354,343 total, including $43,746 overtime and $123,321 detail
Eric P. Nichols — police lieutenant; $306,237 total, including $143,573 overtime
Steven L. Turner — police officer and trainer/instructor; $297,017 total, including $53,694 overtime and $99,617 detail
Lynne L. Pina — police officer; $270,035 total, including $95,927overtime and $55,674 detail
Daniel J. McCarthy — police captain, administrative division; $265,325 total, including $31,14 overtime and $38,375 detail
John P. Joyce — police lieutenant; $262,169 total, including $52,877 in overtime and $47,306 in detail
Randy J. Demello — retired police officer; $255,210 total, including $17,527 in overtime, $90,819 in unused sick time, and $42,360 in unused vacation time
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Other notable entries
No. 18 — Police Chief Edward James Walsh; $232,428
No. 21 — Fire Chief Timothy Bradshaw; $215,933
No. 25 — Superintendent of Schools John Cabral; $208,291
No. 27 — Deputy Fire Chief Matthew Arruda; $199,672 total, including $45,900 overtime
No. 28 — Deputy Fire Chief Eric P. Dumont; $198,301 total, including $44,529 in overtime
No. 41 — Deputy Fire Chief Scott Dexter; $181,755 total, including $38,778 in overtime
No. 55 — Assistant Superintendent of Schools Brenda Moynihan; $171,317
No. 59 — Deputy Fire Chief Jason Boiros; $170,206, including $33,240 in overtime
No. 60 — Assistant Superintendent of Schools Christopher Baratta; $170,167
No. 72 — Taunton Chief Financial Officer Patrick Dello Russo; $163,269
No. 161 — Mayor Shaunna O’ Connell; $125,500
The City Council, at the end of 2022, approved a 6% salary increase for the mayor's position, raising it to $133,048, but that won’t take effect until 2024.
This article originally appeared on The Taunton Daily Gazette: Taunton salaries 2022: Highest paid workers include police, fire
