JAMESTOWN — Police Chief Thomas Tighe was the town’s top wage-earner in 2006, but some unique factors contributed to his gross pay of $89,728.

He served a stint as interim town administrator — his second since becoming chief — and he received payments for longevity and some of his unused sick and vacation time, adding $22,840 to his base pay of $64,788. He also received a standard police uniform allowance of $2,100.

The town’s chief since 1992, Tighe is one of seven police officers on the list of Jamestown’s highest-paid municipal employees. Rounding out the list are three administrators, including one who retired, receiving a payment for unused sick and vacation time that boosted his pay and put his name on the list.

After Tighe, the highest wage-earner was Bruce R. Keiser, who took over as town administrator in mid-January. Formerly the director of administrative services in South Kingstown, Keiser had gross pay of $83,394.

The Providence Journal compiled the top-10 list as part of a statewide look at school and municipal payroll spending during calendar-year 2006. Figures were provided by local town and school officials in response to requests under the state Open Records Law.

The Journal’s analysis looks at gross pay — the total amount paid to employees before taxes are deducted, including base salary or wages, and other “extras,” such as overtime, stipends, severance packages and additional pay for holding more than one job.

After Keiser, the highest-paid administrator was Recreation Director Matthew Bolles. But Bolles, like Tighe, had extenuating circumstances: He retired in November 2006, receiving a $34,295 payment for a portion of his unused sick and vacation time, boosting his gross pay to $77,114. His base pay was $42,816.

The other administrator on the list is Public Works Director Steven Goslee, who had gross pay of $68,773, including a longevity payment of $4,395.

Among police officers on the list, Tighe was the exception in that he did not receive overtime pay. Other officers on the list earned thousands of dollars for working more than the standard 37.5 hours a week — either extra shifts for the department or details, many paid by private companies even though the payments show up in the town’s gross pay figures.

The officers on the top-10 list are: Lt. William Donovan, Officer Keith Woodbine, Detective Sgt. Frank Watson, Sgt. John Dube, Sgt. William Piva and Officer Jason Hopkins. The overtime pay for these officers ranged from $7,527 to $17,763, while pay for details ranged from $1,533 to $14,598. Donovan, Woodbine, Watson, Dube and Piva also received longevity payments, and Dube received a $3,941 payment for unused sick and vacation time when he retired in November 2006. Piva has also since retired and is now the town’s recreation director.

Keiser and Tighe said the town constantly weighs the cost of overtime against the cost of hiring more officers.

“It’s a balancing act as to whether it’s more advantageous to bring someone else on,” Keiser said.

“The fringe benefits such as [Social Security], health, dental, workers’ comp — those kinds of costs are significant … Plus you’re taking on another person for retirement purposes.”

Tighe said he has been a Jamestown police officer for 41 years, since the days when “they still had the ferries running from Jamestown to Newport.”

When he took over as chief in 1992, there were about 11 officers, he said. Today there are 15.

Compiled by Paul Edward Parker

THE PROVIDENCE JOURNAL

Source: Town of Middletown

Compiled by Paul Edward Parker

THE PROVIDENCE JOURNAL

Source: Jamestwon School Dept.

redgar@projo.com