One-sided and narrow-minded

Re: your Aug. 5 article, "20 highest paid in county":

The Star proves itself one-sided and narrow-minded, again.

As the wife of a deputy proudly serving this county for more than 16 years, am I the only one who noticed not a single deputy or senior deputy appearing on the "list" of moneymakers? Yet, The Star calls law enforcement a lucrative career. A little startling, considering basic deputies and senior deputies make up at least 80 percent of the department.

How many other jobs require six months of intense, military-style training before even getting the job title?

One glaring deficiency in The Star's "reporting" was the fact deputies have to pay out-of-pocket for mediocre health insurance. In fact, our biweekly, out-of-pocket total for health and dental is more than $275, so take an additional $7,000-plus a year off his salary, before taxes. This also does not include life-insurance premiums or the amounts set aside to cover us should something happen to him while he gets spit on, cussed at and sometimes attacked by people.

Cops in this county cannot apply for state disability if they are injured, on or off duty. If the county fights a workers' compensation claim for four months, as it did my husband's, you better hope you have vacation and savings set aside because there is no government money set aside for you.

Let me tell you what my husband makes: It isn't enough to replace my seven-year old car. It isn't even enough to get our family of four out of the 1,300 square feet we live in with the gang members in the house around the corner. And it certainly isn't enough to buy a subscription to a paper that cannot even report the truth.

— Cristy Richey-McNay, Newbury Park

Maybe they got the right career

Re: your Aug. 5 article, "20 highest paid in county":

Publishing the highest-paid county employees certainly did not seem out of line to me. I can't remember any place in the article that said the people getting the money didn't deserve it.

One thread of commonality in the irate responses (mostly from firefighters) was that they are always ready to help, 24/7, they miss a lot of family holidays due to work (overtime) and they all do it for us.

Perhaps a comparison might be in order. I will use a naval aviator.

A very high-achiever with a college degree and in top physical condition may apply for flight training. Few are accepted. Candidates go through a two-year program of flight training. They are then sent to replacement squadrons for further training in a specific type of aircraft. Then they go to a squadron where the training continues. They fly nights, weekends, good weather and foul, and, much of the time, off the end of an aircraft carrier. They are entrusted with multimillion-dollar aircraft. When not flying, they do jobs in the squadron. There is no overtime pay. They deploy for six to 12 months away from families. They are totally dedicated to protecting the United States, even if it means laying down their lives. They are paid a fraction of what a fireman might expect.

I don't want to denigrate what our emergency responders do. They are professional and skilled and certainly earn our respect. I have never heard of a compulsory draft for firefighters. To the contrary, there always seems an abundance of applicants. Rather than attack The Star for publishing "all" the highest-paid county employees, maybe they should conclude that they might have picked the right profession?

— Allan R. Prevette, Camarillo

They are worth every tax dollar

Re: your Aug. 5 article, "20 highest paid in county":

When did The Star become the National Enquirer? It seems every year, it publishes the same story, always one-sided. I have a lot of friends and family who are firefighters and police officers. I see how much they sacrifice. I see the plays, school functions, sporting events and holidays missed every year.

The Star did not mention the fact these men and women work whenever asked to. They do not have the luxury of working an eight-hour day and then returning to their spouse and children. No, it is usually a 12-hour day and their schedules vary weekly/monthly and for what? To protect strangers.

The Star did not mention the countless family vacations missed or the endless days and nights families of these "overpaid" individuals spend worrying and wondering if their spouse/father/mother/child will make it home safe. All The Star is concerned about is how much money was earned last year in overtime.

There are millions of individuals who sit behind a desk for a few hours a day and earn more money than firefighters or police officers could ever dream of, but I do not see The Star writing articles about them.

Public-service employees risk their lives every minute of the year, not only while on duty, but off duty as well.

I will gladly pay my tax dollars to these individuals who protect me from danger 24 hours a day, seven days a week. I am also glad they are paid well at retirement, at least then, they can finally spend some quality time with their families.

The next time The Star publishes an article on the overpaid firefighters and police officers, publish both sides of the story and get the facts straight.

— Stacy Diaz, Camarillo

List reflects only a handful

Re: your Aug. 5 article, "20 highest paid in county":

We appreciate The Star is looking out for how our taxpayer money is spent, and I would like to take this opportunity to clarify a few points.

It's important to know the salary figures published in the story are for a handful of firefighters and do not reflect the much-lower salary the average firefighter earns. Also the few firefighters described work large amounts of overtime at great personal sacrifice. Much of their overtime is worked while deployed out of the county for weeks at a time on elite incident management teams. These teams are composed of experts who manage major emergencies across the nation, and very few of these teams exist. We are lucky to have Ventura County firefighters participating on them. Not only is the department fully reimbursed for their time, but these firefighters bring back invaluable skills and experience that are immediately available to the citizens of Ventura County. These team members help manage our own major incidents, including brush fires, earthquakes and the floods that happen here.

It is also worth noting that, under federal law, firefighters don't even begin to earn overtime until after they work 53 hours in a week, not the lower 40-hour threshold for most other workers. The county saves millions of taxpayer dollars by putting its firefighters on a 56-hour-per-week schedule rather than the 40-hour week most people work. Still more money is saved by filling vacancies with overtime rather than paying the higher cost of extra employees.

I thank The Star for the article and for this opportunity to respond.

— Chris Mahon, President, Ventura County Professional Firefighters, Camarillo

Overtime cheaper than new hires

I was surprised to see The Star use stories that complain about the overtime a firefighter or sheriff's deputy makes when serving the people of Ventura County. It's been well more than 30 years since massive studies were made that showed it cheaper to pay time-and-a-half to these employees than to hire more new employees to fill the voids necessary to cover illness or injuries.

The cost to hire a new employee includes salary, benefits, pension, months at a training tower, uniforms and safety equipment, emergency medical technician training with recertification every two years, in-house training for a commercial driver's license and many other things.

I am glad to see these men and women making so much money because if they didn't, my taxes for our public safety would be much higher.

— John Scholfield, Ojai,