Ten-4

[GlobalNorth]

Since today is the unofficial Public Safety Dispatch day, a big thanks to all the call-takers, dispatchers, and techs that handle the sometimes hysterical callers, the surly officers on unwanted OT, the constantly full call queue, and the techs that keep the proper electrons going to their proper locations... A BIG SALUTE OF THANKS!

 

[mmckenna]

That's right, Happy 10-4 day, good buddy!

I've worked around our dispatchers enough to know there isn't any way I could do their job. Takes a special kind of person, and I ain't it.

 

[GlobalNorth]

That's right, Happy 10-4 day, good buddy!

I've worked around our dispatchers enough to know there isn't any way I could do their job. Takes a special kind of person, and I ain't it.

Indeed!

 

[TGuelker]

I was surprised to learn dispatchers are considered clerks.
Too many are committing suicide because of the stress and not knowing the outcome of the call.

A good friend was a dispatcher for a local community. He died unexpectedly, and at the funeral his sister mentioned that he was constantly depressed.

A dispatcher in Wentville, MO. recently passed away but I have not been able to verify if it was suicide.

Frantic calls about a child that found a gun, or drowned never leave the memory.

Dispatchers need PTSD support, and better pay. Most only make around $35k/year.

 

[mmckenna]

The federal government recently changed the job classification for dispatchers from "administrative" to "first responders.".
While on its own it doesn't do much, it does give a path forward to fix a lot of those issues.

Low pay is a big issue. It takes a long time and a lot of money for a dispatcher to be background checked, trained, qualified and ready to work on their own. 6 months or more in most cases. That's a lot of time and money spent on someone that may or may not stick around.

Job stress is a huge, huge factor. Dealing with the worst society has to offer. Weird job shifts. Staring at a computer all day. Some of the stuff they have to listen to, deal with, it would push anyone over the edge.

 

[mbnv992]

In CT dispatchers ( and especially PD ) made bank there. Then again, you’d have to in order to survive in that state.

I’ve since moved to AZ and the pay for dispatchers isn’t that great. In fact, Phoenix PD just up’ed their starting pay by $15,000 a year since they are so desperate for police officers. No one wants to be a cop anymore and I don’t blame them. This day and age absolutely sucks.

 

[TGuelker]

A lot of dispatchers are required to work 16 hour days for 3 days in a row, go home and sleep for 3 hours then back at it.

My wife used to work at the courthouse as a deputy clerk. The dispatchers are in the same union.

Found this photo of the Brooklyn, NY 911 dispatch center. Lots of unstaffed workstations.

 

[mmckenna]

Found this photo of the Brooklyn, NY 911 dispatch center. Lots of unstaffed workstations.

That could be a time of day thing. Looks like it's sunny outside, that usually keeps the weirdos hiding.

But, yeah, the shift work would be awful. Sitting in front of a computer that long. There are entire threads on the APCO site about dispatchers trying to find ways to get exercise while working. It can be an extremely unhealthy work environment.

I don't spend much time in our dispatch center, but I've heard things I cannot unhear. The emotional toll on them is high and it takes a special kind of person to do that as a career.

 

[ten13]

That could be a time of day thing. Looks like it's sunny outside, that usually keeps the weirdos hiding.

Not anymore. Daytime, nighttime...it's all the same in NYC these days...busy.

Those empty seats are indicative of an overwhelming problem for the NYPD, that being the inability to hire dispatchers.

Since "civillianizing" Communications way-back in the late-60s, early-70s, the NYPD has had a hard time hiring and KEEPING civilians in their 911 and dispatcher's spots. One of the hiring criteria was that the applicant had to live withing NYC, which limited the experience and ability of those they hired, despite the fact that the "experience" was (a) held ANY job in the past, and, (b) be able to type.

And even if they do get people to fill the spots needed, some of the applicants are "shocked....SHOCKED..." to find they have to "work nights," "work weekend," and find themselves being assigned to an off-the-wall schedule, like a 2000 hr to 0400 hr tour of duty, and/or being mandated to remain on-duty for the next tour due to insufficient manning.

To show this desperation in hiring, the most recent announcement for "Police Communications Technicians" has eliminated the residency requirement, apparently with the hopes that they may be able to interest young people with actual dispatch experience from the surrounding towns and counties. Unfortunately, the salary for the PCT's job does not commiserate with the commute to the Bronx or Brooklyn one would have to make.

With that all said, the police dispatcher's job generally is hard to fill since the long-time dispatchers demanded to be recognized, professionally, by requiring "certifications," from basic dispatch, to Incident Command, First-Aid/CPR, etc., all as pre-requisites for hiring, and while still reaping unrealistically poor salaries, limiting the pool of applicants.

Merely throwing the "10-4 Day" to dispatchers doesn't help pay the rent, something the politicians had better wake up to.

 

[mmckenna]

Merely throwing the "10-4 Day" to dispatchers doesn't help pay the rent, something the politicians had better wake up to.

This is a problem all over. Low pay and awful work conditions make it an unpopular job, especially when less stressful jobs can pay better.
I think that was the thinking behind the reclassification of 911 dispatchers. Better pay and better work conditions would increase retention.
I remember talking to our PSAP manager once, it was something like 50% or more of the people couldn't make the cut and didn't last. The amount of money wasted on training adds up quickly. To shift those costs from training people that fail out to retaining the ones they have makes a lot of sense.

Years ago our Chief decided that I needed to have the proper security clearance/background checks to be working with them. Made total sense and I always wondered why it hadn't been done before. Problem was, there was no security clearance level for "radio guy". They looked at the options and decided that I needed more than "random IT guy" and less than "sworn officer". Since I worked around the PSAP, they had me do the process used for their dispatchers. I can't remember the number for the POST form I had to fill out, but it was something like 36 pages of questions. I had to submit finger prints, DMV printout, financial checks, credit scores, high school and college transcripts, job history, personal and work references, and then they had an officer come through the neighborhood and talked to a lot of my neighbors asking about me.
I passed and joked with them that it made me realize I'd missed out on a lot of fun when I was younger. PSAP manager pointed out that most of the applicants couldn't pass the background checks and would love to have been able to.

I agree 100% with the process. But to expect those levels of qualifications, on top of all the stress and awful hours, and then pay them crap, it's unreasonable. Hopefully things will improve.

 

[avdrummerboy]

I was a dispatcher for 3 months, that's all I could take of it. EMS is my true calling. My hat is absolutely off to dispatchers and what they do. Nothing but respect for them and their side of the job!!!