Public Safety Dispatcher Trainee
GRADE: 10
Bi-Weekly Rate of Pay: $1,638.00
POSITION TITLE: PUBLIC SAFETY DISPATCHER TRAINEE
DEPARTMENT: COMMUNICATIONS
REPORTS TO: COMMUNICATIONS SUPERVISOR
Position Summary
This is the entry-level dispatcher position within the City of St. Louis Department of Public Safety. Incumbents work as call takers and receive Police, Fire, EMS emergency and non-emergency calls from residents, generate the appropriate service request(s), and/or redirect the calls to other dispatch personnel for appropriate follow-up and response. Upon completion of their working test period and being granted permanent status, Public Safety Dispatcher (Trainees) shall receive a title change to Public Safety Dispatcher II and the bi-weekly rate of $1,740.00
functions of the job
Essential Functions
- Answer telephone calls to the 9-1-1 center received over 9-1-1 and various other, non-emergency phone numbers, evaluate calls for the need for police, fire, emergency medical services or other non-emergency responders.
- Provide information and/or redirect calls to other agencies or divisions if not a police incident requiring dispatch of police officers to the scene.
- Notify the Fire Department, Emergency Medical Service or other agency when their services are needed.
- Transfer caller to the appropriate agency if the need for service is outside the City of St. Louis.
- When acting as a Complaint Evaluator, operate Computer Aided Dispatch system terminal; enter crime type, location information of caller, location where service is needed, caller’s name and telephone number, emergency service needed, narrative encapsulation of incident, and other necessary remarks. Transfer completed or partially completed CAD incident to appropriate Dispatcher. Inform the appropriate Dispatcher and police units over the radio of certain serious incidents before transferring the CAD incident to the Dispatcher. May adjust the priority level of the incident when necessary.
- When acting as an Information Dispatcher, operate Regional Justice Information System to conduct inquiries on wanted persons, vehicle registrations and other information requested by police officers; make notifications and callbacks requested by officers; maintain manual records of requests and results.
- Maintain constant communication with callers and, if necessary, update officers of the situation on-site.
- Monitors call systems in the Communications department; maintain a high level of response when incoming calls are at peak volume.
- Inform supervisor of all serious incidents or those of an unusual nature.
- Comply with revisions from time to time after mutual consultation.
- Manually record requests for non-emergency services involving on-going problems for forwarding to the appropriate police district.
- Regular, punctual attendance is required.
- Keep up to date records and files such as gas and preventative maintenance records on all vehicles; tool control lists; etc.
QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS
Knowledge:
- A high school diploma or General Educational Development (G.E.D.)
Experience:
- Some experience in emergency public safety services, dispatching, or customer service in a call center work environment; OR, completion of a recognized dispatcher training program.
Skills and Abilities:
- Data Utilization: Requires the ability to perform basic level of data analysis including the ability to review, classify, categorize, prioritize and/or reference data, statutes and/or guidelines and/or group, rank, investigate and diagnose. Requires discretion in determining and referencing such to established standards to recognize interactive effects and relationships.
- Human Interaction: Requires the ability to provide guidance, assistance and/or interpretation to others, such as coworkers and the public, on how to apply policies, procedures and standards to specific situations.
- Equipment, Machinery, Tools and Materials Use: Requires the ability to operate, maneuver and/or provide simple but continuous adjustment on equipment, machinery and tools such as computer-aided dispatch console, telephone, paging system, and/or materials used in performing essential functions.
- Verbal Aptitude: Requires the ability to utilize a variety of advisory data and information such as activity logs, time sheets, maps, street guides, standard operating procedures, technical operating manuals and guidelines.
- Mathematical Aptitude: Requires the ability to perform addition, subtraction, division and multiplication.
- Functional Reasoning: Requires the ability to apply principles of rational systems. Ability to interpret instructions furnished in written, oral, diagrammatic or schedule form. Ability to exercise independent judgment to adopt or modify methods and standards to meet variations in assigned objectives.
- Situational Reasoning: Requires the ability to exercise the judgment, decisiveness and creativity required in emergency situations involving the evaluation of information against sensory, judgmental and/or subjective criteria, as opposed to criteria that are clearly measurable or verifiable.
- Environmental Factors: Tasks are regularly performed in safe and comfortable surroundings without exposure to adverse environmental conditions. Although incumbents are subject to stress by being involved by telephone with emergency situations.
- Physical Requirements: Requires the ability to sustain prolonged visual concentration. Requires the ability to speak clearly.
- Sensory Requirements: Requires the ability to recognize and identify degrees of similarities or differences between characteristics of colors, shapes and sounds associated with job-related objects, materials and tasks to evaluate callers during emergency situations and decipher colored maps.
Working Environment:
- Normal office environment with attending outside functions when required.
Machines, Tools, Equipment and Work Aids:
- Personal Computer
- Telephone
- Cell Phone
- Copier/Fax Machine
- Vehicle
PHYSICAL/VISUAL ACTIVITIES OR DEMANDS
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, reach, grasp, talk, and hear.
This position requires clarity of vision at 20 inches or less and the ability to bring objects into sharp focus, while reading from a computer screen.
The job has light physical demand (primarily sedentary) requiring the employee to exert negligible force frequently to lift, carry, push, pull or otherwise move objects in the normal course of routine office activities.
The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
The job description does not necessarily contain all of the actual or essential duties of this position. All job offers are contingent upon passing a medical evaluation/drug screen and criminal background check.
Certain job functions described herein may be subject to possible modification in accordance with applicable state and federal laws. “Commonly associated” is not intended to mean always or only. There are different experiences that suggest other ways or circumstances where reasonable changes or accommodations are appropriate.
