Overtime In Final Years Will Spike Ann Arbor Cop’s Lifetime Pension Payout

One Ann Arbor police detective with 31 years of experience would collect an annual pension of $126,000 if he retired this year, according to the city of Ann Arbor.

Detective David Monroe is eligible for that six-figure pension because he collected $47,491 in overtime in his final year, boosting his base pay of $93,922 to a total salary of $151,618. The overtime is not the only additional compensation police officers receive on top of overtime.

The overtime pay Monroe received in 2017 would permanently boost his pension payout by $13,495 in every year of retirement. That’s because the pension system Ann Arbor created for its employees allows overtime to be used in its benefit formula. Monroe is the secretary and a trustee of that system, representing members of the police department.

No one disputes that Monroe worked the hours, or suggests that city rules or the union contract limit this. Colleagues say he works as many extra shifts as he can, and the record shows that was not just in his last year with the city.

The past 10 years, Monroe’s gross salary has averaged $133,334 a year, boosted by tens of thousands in annual overtime.

Monroe’s base pay his last year was $93,922, according to the city of Ann Arbor. If his pension benefit amount were based on his base pay, his pension would be $80,000 a year.

These compensation and pension calculations are based on information received from the city of Ann Arbor in response to several Freedom of Information Act requests.

Wendy Orcutt, the executive director of the City of Ann Arbor Employees’ Retirement System, did not return an email seeking comment.