Lifeguard collects $500,000 a year, and taxpayers are on the hook
Topline: Los Angeles County had 134 lifeguards who earned more than $200,000 in salary and benefits last year, costing taxpayers $70.8 million for the 1,500 lifeguards.
Key facts: Chief of Lifeguard Services Fernando Boiteux made $523,351 in salary and benefits. His $100,000 pension contribution from the county meant he outearned every other lifeguard even without working overtime.
Three others made more than $400,000 in total compensation.
Some lifeguards made their dough with a high base salary, while others racked up large overtime payments. Captain of Lifeguard Services Remy Smith has a salary of $159,708, but he made $171,180 in overtime to take home $468,556 in total including benefits.
OpenTheBooks has been tracking L.A.’s lifeguard pay since 2019, and the numbers have been shocking every year. Boiteux earned $2.4 million from 2020 to 2024, including benefits. Smith made nearly $2 million from 2020 to 2024, including $702,968 of overtime. At least eight other lifeguards also made more than $1.4 million in the last five years.
Top lifeguard officials and all ocean lifeguards are enrolled in California’s Tier 5 pension plan, meaning if they retire after working at least 33 years, they can collect an annual pension up to 90% of their salary.
Ryan Aronson, one of the winners of the 2024 Lifeguard Medal of Valor, made only $65,000 in salary and benefits.
Search all federal, state and local salaries and vendor spending with the world’s largest government spending databas
Background: Los Angeles County pays lifeguards far more than the City of Los Angeles, which hires its lifeguards on a part-time basis. The highest-paid made $35,000 last year.
But the city is spending more than enough on its other employees. One firefighter earned $644,457 in overtime alone last year, and the police recently took out a loan to cover overtime costs after last year’s record $266 million spend.
Summary: There’s nothing wrong with compensating the employees who are keeping the public safe, but Los Angeles might be able to afford even more safety measures if its lifeguards weren’t taking home more than $500,000.
The #WasteOfTheDay is brought to you by the forensic auditors at OpenTheBooks.com