Fire departments across the United States are fighting more than flames - they are also battling claims that staff members and volunteers are taking too much overtime that's costing municipalities millions. Some Oklahoma City firefighters, for example, have managed to increase their base salaries 20 percent or more, according to The Oklahoman. Collectively, they have brought in over $7.3 million in premium wages for their additional time and attendance.

Oklahoma is not alone in this problem, as a similar issue was recently addressed in Weaver City, Alabama, according to The Anniston Star. There, the city council is proposing drastic measures to mitigate the payroll overages, which are putting municipal budgets in jeopardy, the source explains.

"We cannot keep this up forever," Councilman Pete White of Oklahoma City's Ward 4 told The Oklahoman. "It's a lot of money. It's especially a lot of money when every month our sales tax collections are down."

Fortunately, cities and states can take action to legally reduce the amount of overtime they owe government employees and first responders without violating the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division establishes that in certain circumstances, state or local government organizations can award compensatory time off in place of extra wages if employees work more than 40 hours in a single work week.

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