The highest-paid Fairfax County employees aren’t necessarily those with the highest base salaries, and many in the upper echelons of the county staff reaped tens of thousands in additional compensation last year, according to documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act.

Overtime, bonuses and leave payments ratcheted up pay levels substantially and put the pay ofsome staff members above that of their department heads. For example, more than two dozen Fire and Rescue Department employees took home more than Fire Chief Michael Neuhard, who in calendar year 2006 earned a total $151,878. A deputy sheriff first lieutenant made $184,318.