By Graham Rayman
Newsday (New York)
Copyright 2006 Newsday, Inc.
New York City Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta says Gerald Snell doesn’t have to retire, as long as he gives up his overtime.
Snell, 54, of Long Beach, is a fire captain and 27-year veteran of the department who has charged that the FDNY is unfairly forcing him to retire. Snell, who is disabled as a result of his 9/11-related lung ailments, said he wants to stay on the job in spite of his condition.
Though Snell would earn a tax-free pension of more than $80,000 if he retired, he maintains that he wants to keep working as a supervisor in the FDNY’s substance abuse counseling unit.
“His concern is about acquiring more overtime, and that is our concern as well,” Scoppetta said. “Keeping people on like that to acquire more and more overtime is not what those protections are for.”
Snell, who has been on light duty for two years, denied the charge that he was only staying on for overtime that would boost his retirement pension. So far this year, he has earned $40,000 in overtime.
Snell said the FDNY has already denied two different formal requests that would have allowed him to stay on, so he said yesterday that he is skeptical of Scoppetta’s remarks.
“I don’t believe him,” Snell said. “I think they want me out.”
The Fire Department, in rare cases, allows firefighters with certified disabilities to remain with the agency if they can show that their skills are irreplaceable.
Snell’s case was set to go before the retirement board Friday, but the meeting was postponed. A new date has not been set.