Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Services Chief John Lane had no complaints about the city's refusal to grant his request for about $4.5 million for overtime to be added to the 2017 budget.

The $4.5 million figure was based on 3% of wage costs.

“The increase overtime was not included in the budget,” Lane confirmed Friday. “But, as I said in the meeting, the approach that we take, where we go back to the finance committee mid-year and look at what our expectation is going to be and we re-allocate already-budgeted money from other areas where surpluses are expected, it's a fair tax-efficient model.”

City finance chair Scott Gillingham pointed out that the WFPS is conducting its first Standards of Cover study to determine the best practice in the field of deployment analysis and station location. That report is due in 180 days.

“That would compare the cost of overtime to the hiring of full-time employees,” Gillingham said. “It will be important to see that analysis rather than looking at it year after year.”

Adding full-time employees at this point would be premature, a finance committee rep said.

“Once we get Standards of Cover study and the final version of firefighters underwriters survey in place and really have a much clearer idea of where we're going in terms of what the actual, current and future resource need is, then that's the time to really establish the budget and go forward from there,” Lane said.

jbender@postmedia.com

Twitter: @bendersun