The MTA is paying out more money to fewer employees, according to a study released yesterday.
Despite shedding 3,500, the transit agency’s payroll increased by $71 million from 2009 to 2010 — a 1.4 percent jump following the loss of 1.1 percent of its workforce, according to the Empire Center for Public Policy.
The study also found that the average employee’s take-home pay rose, climbing nearly 3 percent to $71,237.
MTA Chairman Jay Walder topped the list of highest-paid employees, earning $350,000.
The MTA said in a statement: “In 2010, the MTA eliminated 3,500 positions, froze managerial salaries for the third straight year and cut 15% of administrative payroll, en route to an annual budget savings of more than $500 million. Nonetheless, payroll did increase from 2009 to 2010 due to the 4% wage increase awarded by an arbitrator to the members of TWU Local 100.”
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