Police Dispatcher II - Lateral

Job Characteristics

OPEN & PROMOTIONAL JOB OPPORTUNITY

Police Dispatcher II - Lateral

Please note: this is not an entry level police dispatcher position. You must be a POST certified Dispatcher at a law enforcement agency in order to qualify.

The City of Concord's Police Department is currently seeking customer-service oriented individuals who enjoy working in a highly productive yet fast-paced environment to serve as their next Police Dispatcher. This position is open until filled and may close at any time.

The Police Department: The members of the Concord Police Department are dedicated to providing the highest quality police services in order to enhance community safety, protect life and property, and reduce crime and the fear of crime. To do this, we pledge to develop a partnership with the community, lead a community commitment to resolve problems, and improve the safety and quality of life in our city.

What you will be doing in this role: This is the journey-level position which performs the full range of radio and telephone dispatch duties with a high degree of independence. The Police Dispatcher II performs activities related to the processing of service requests including communications and dispatch, status monitoring, information development and communication, entry level dispatcher training, and records and file maintenance in a computer-aided environment.

We are looking for someone who:

• Can assess situations accurately, make quick decisions, and use sound judgement
• Has excellent oral and written communication skills
• Is naturally compassionate and comfortable speaking to individuals who are emotional or stressed
• Can multi-task and quickly prioritize needs
• Can work in a collaborative team environment and take instruction well
• Stay composed and control their own emotions
• Has the technological skills to operate multiple computers, programs, radios and recording equipment
• Has excellent attention to detail and organization skills
• Is familiar with or can quickly learn the city of Concord and can read maps to find routes, locations, and addresses
• Is flexible, resilient, and can adapt to any situation
• Embraces and embodies the City's Mission, Vision and Values

RECRUITMENT INCENTIVES

Signing Bonus of up to $10,000:

• $5,000 upon successful completion of the one-year probationary period.
• $5,000 six months following the completion of probation (i.e., at 18 months of employment).

Leave Pre-Accruals:

The first year of leave accruals (80 hours vacation and 96 hours sick leave) shall be front-loaded at time of hire.

Communications Training Officer Pay Differential: Police Dispatcher IIs who are assigned as Communications Training Officers (CTOs) will receive an additional 5% pay for each hour assigned and engaged in providing formal training to a police dispatcher trainee.

EXCELLENT BENEFITS PACKAGE

This position is represented by Teamsters Local 856 and receives an excellent benefits package, including but not limited to:

• $2.00/hour shift differential for night shift and $2.50/hour for grave shift
• $150/month bilingual pay for qualifying languages
• Participation in CalPERS pension, tiered based on date of hire
• A variety of health care plans or a cash-in-lieu benefit of $200 if waiving coverage
• City-paid dental insurance; employee-paid vision insurance
• Vacation accruals starting at 10 days per year, 12 days sick leave per year, and 11 paid holidays per year
• Generous tuition reimbursement program
• 457 deferred compensation plan
• Flexible spending accounts (FSAs) for healthcare, dependent care and commuting costs
• Life and disability insurance
• A wellness program that offers yoga and fitness classes, annual health expos, health and nutrition education, as well as a variety of mental health resources

TYPING CERTIFICATE REQUIREMENT

A typing certificate issued within the last 12 months is required. The typing certificate must be attached to the online application and scored according to the following method: 5 minute timed typing exercise, showing a gross rate of speed and a net rate of speed. This information MUST be included on the typing certificate. Applications received without a valid typing certificate attached, or not meeting the minimum words per minute (35 net WPM) WILL NOT be considered and WILL NOT be contacted to correct the deficiency. IMPORTANT: Contact with candidates will primarily be via email. Make sure you list a current email that you check regularly on your application.

Background Investigation: All appointments to this position are subject to a fingerprint check, polygraph and background investigation coordinated by the Concord Police Department. The following list describes some areas that are covered in the investigation.

• Your relatives, references, and acquaintances are asked to comment on your suitability for a career in law enforcement.
• The information supplied regarding your educational history is examined and verified.
• You must list a history of your residences.
• Your work history and experience are examined with regard to your dependability, relationships with fellow workers, trustworthiness, and general job performance.
• Military service records are subject to verification.
• The background investigation considers your management of personal finances (however, being in debt does not automatically disqualify you).
• Your criminal, driving, and insurance records are evaluated. Felony convictions will be grounds for disqualification from the selection process.
• If you have a history of recent or prolonged use of illegal controlled substances you may be dismissed from the process.

Deliberate misstatements or omissions can and often will result in your application being rejected, regardless of the nature or reason for the misstatements/omissions. In fact, the number one reason individuals fail and/or are disqualified during the background investigation is because they deliberately withhold or misrepresent job-relevant information. Applicants must be truthful in all phases of the process and promptly submit documentation when requested.

Helpful tips when applying:

• It is important to carefully read the complete job bulletin before submitting your application so you are aware of all requirements of both the position and the process.
• When preparing your application, consider reviewing the job announcement and classification specification so that you may emphasize work experience relevant to the position for which you are applying.
• Job duties should be an accurate reflection of the work you completed. Copying and pasting from your job description is not recommended as there may be duties listed that you did not perform.
• Answer all required supplemental questions completely and honestly. The information you put in the supplemental questionnaire must also be verified in your work history so if you say you have certain experience in the questionnaire, make sure we can see it listed in your job history as well so we know where you performed those functions and for how long.

Examples of duties include, but are not limited to

1. Receives, interprets, classifies, prioritizes and responds to calls of a routine and emergency nature, including those calls involving life-threatening situations. Enters relevant information by computer keyboard and, as appropriate, transmits message for dispatching.
2. Assigns calls to police units for necessary action, determining how many and which units are required for response. May coordinate, with patrol supervisors regarding deployment of personnel. Visually monitors video display terminals and aurally monitors police radio frequencies to ensure correct status of officers and pending and dispatched calls, making "on-line changes" via keyboard as appropriate. Calls out Public Works standby personnel, perform call-outs for various local government entities, and monitors local government radio for their status.
3. Determines appropriate communications or research channels selecting from emergency telephone lines, radio room telephone lines, business telephone lines, police radio channels, other agency radio channels, and manual computerized information systems.
4. Provides information to officers expeditiously in areas such as warrants, vehicles, driver's licenses, parole, and criminal history information. Interprets or clarifies coded responses from various systems for police officers or other parties. Confirms warrants with responsible agencies, receives warrants and updates status of warrants.
5. Accesses and updates information in a variety of on-line Law Enforcement data systems, including systems which contain confidential data.
6. Develops, confirms, and relays information by contacting persons such as those in the internal chain of command; relatives of those involved in incidents; employers; hospitals; sworn and non-sworn public safety personnel at other agencies; other City departments; ambulance services