Just ask custodians: Average pay for same basic job varies widely

By Conor Shine

Wednesday, June 26, 2013 | 2 a.m.

Ever wonder what working as a crime scene analyst for Metro Police pays? Or what Las Vegas’ chief financial officer makes in a year?

As part of its analysis of public employee salaries in 2012, the Sun has spotlighted a cross-section of different positions and the average salary a worker made performing similar job duties in the different municipalities.

The list includes job titles shared by hundreds of employees as well as a few executive-level positions held by only one person. Some have comparable private-sector counterparts, like custodian or mechanic, while other jobs you’ll only get working for the government, like being a firefighter or police officer.

Positions within Clark County, North Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Henderson and Metro Police are all included in these examples, although not every job can be found at every municipality, and job responsibilities can vary from city to city.

• Police Officer

  Metro Police: $68,333

  North Las Vegas: $74,762

  Henderson: $80,239

• Custodian

  Clark County: $29,990

  Las Vegas: $50,247

  Henderson: $41,929

  North Las Vegas: $39,957

  Metro Police: $46,696

• Mechanic

  Clark County: $54,215

  Las Vegas: $68,798

  Henderson: $64,219

  North Las Vegas: $62,299

• Firefighter

  Clark County: $64,275

  Las Vegas: $68,924

  Henderson: $61,686

  North Las Vegas: $68,449

• Corrections Officer

  Las Vegas: $70,131

  Henderson: $62,790

  North Las Vegas: $55,636

  Metro: $68,959

• Crime Scene Analyst

  Henderson: $75,482

  North Las Vegas: $66,279

  Metro: $48,468

• Code Enforcement Officer

  Clark County:$55,406

  Las Vegas: $65,393

  Henderson: $59,185

  North Las Vegas: $71,705

• Legal secretary

  Clark County: $45,699

  Las Vegas: $62,320

  Henderson: $54,095

  North Las Vegas: $38,311

• City/county manager

  Clark County: $199,284

  Las Vegas: $177,975

  Henderson: $164,423*

  North Las Vegas: $171,347

  *Henderson’s city manager earns an annual salary of $225,000 but was only on the job part of 2012.

• Finance director

  Clark County: $187,886

  Las Vegas: $160,412

  Henderson: $168,478

  North Las Vegas: $118,776

• Public works director

  Clark County: $144,997

  Las Vegas: $131,405

  Henderson: $168,478

  North Las Vegas: $150,904