It never ends: Yet another city employee has managed to finagle an absurdly padded pension for himself.
As The Post reported this week, the city has now decided to end its fight to trim ex-firefighter John Giuffrida’s $74,624 “disability” pay — even though he’s somehow able to compete in high-level martial-arts contests.
Taxpayers are stuck with the tab.
Again.
Giuffrida first began getting the extra-large pay in 2003 after being deemed “disabled” by Ground Zero ailments. But after The Post reported last year on his post-retirement athletic exploits, the FDNY launched an unprecedented attempt to overturn the disability finding.
And an unbiased panel of doctors determined that Giuffrida was healthy enough to return to work.
Alas, union representatives on the pension board wouldn’t agree to send him back absent another medical review — which would’ve helped Giuffrida “run out the clock.”
Under the rules, the city can’t make any pension adjustments after the 20th anniversary of an individual’s hiring — Aug. 11, in Giuffrida’s case. Another medical exam would have pushed the case past the deadline.
Now Giuffrida’s sitting pretty: He gets to collect his tax-free checks for life.
And his case comes on the heels of a similarly outrageous decision: the Police Pension Board’s refusal to strip disability pay from coke-snorting ex-cop James Seiferheld — who, as The Post also reported, was found to have no trouble doing regular heavy-construction work.
Guys like Giuffrida and Seiferheld are able to get away with such outrages because the deck is stacked against the taxpayer: Lawmakers, looking to curry favor with the unions, write rules to make it easy to qualify for fatter pensions — even when they’re clearly not warranted.
No wonder pension costs are quickly approaching the breaking point.
No wonder taxpayers are so disgusted.
No wonder Gov. Cuomo is seeking reform.
Fact is, it’s long past time.
Giuffrida alone proves that.