Times Square billboard says NYC Cops #1 crime fighters rank 145th in pay

Angered by the low national salary standing of NYC police officers, New York City Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association president Patrick J. Lynch unveiled a massive 80 by 25 foot billboard near Times Square that underscores the inequity in police pay between New York City and other municipalities.

The billboard that states “NYC Cops, ranked # 1 in the nation in fighting crime – ranked # 145 in the nation in salary: It’s time to fix the injustice” will be on display for a month on 42nd Street just east of 8th Avenue. Listed in descending order on both sides of the billboard are the police departments who earn more than New York City police officers.

“New York City’s heroic police officers, who put their lives on the line everyday patrolling one of the nation’s toughest beats and who successfully protected hundreds of thousands of New Years Eve revelers right here, earn less than 144 other police departments. That is an outrage and an insult,” Lynch said. “To make matters even worse, according to these independent figures, New York City’s cops don’t even earn the average of the nation’s 200 largest police departments and that has to be fixed. As we negotiate our contract, the city has a chance to correct this injustice.”

Lynch pointed out that during good fiscal times, while the rest of the nation was increasing their police officer’s pay appropriately, New York City’s police officers suffered with a “zeroes for heroes” contract.