Some sanitation workers in NYC earned nearly $300,000 last year as staff shortages and snowstorms boosted overtime pay

• 94 NYC sanitation workers each earned more than $100,000 in overtime last year, per payroll records reviewed by the NY Post.
• The overtime pay boost hiked some sanitation workers’ wages to nearly $300,000, per the data.
• The Department of Sanitation pointed to pandemic-related labor shortages and snowstorms.

Nearly 100 sanitation workers in New York City each earned more than $100,000 in overtime during the last fiscal year because of labor shortages and snowstorms, The New York Post first reported Sunday.

Overtime pay boosted some Department of Sanitation workers’ annual salaries to nearly $300,000, according to citywide payroll data reviewed by The Post. Insider has verified the data.

The highest-paid sanitation worker, a supervisor, earned $299,160 in the 2020-21 fiscal year, including $170,000 in overtime pay, the data shows.

By way of comparison, Edward Grayson, Commissioner of the Department of Sanitation since December 2020, earned a base salary of $243,000.

Joshua Goodman, a spokesperson for the Department of Sanitation, told Insider that staff shortages in the pandemic and snowstorms had created additional opportunities for overtime. Some supervisors and superintendents worked 12-hour shifts to make up for staff shortages, Goodman said.

One of the best-paid sanitation workers was Devon Graham, who received $282,153, including $153,000 in overtime. The former supervisor told The Post that although the pay was a “nice windfall,” it didn’t feel like it at the time.