Re: 911:: Survey - What Would Make Your Job Better?

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In a message dated 12/16/01 9:20:55 AM Eastern Standard Time, bfurey@...

writes:

> 1 - What would make your job better? Everyone griping a little less

> 2 - What makes a good working environment? Same as #1

> 3 - Is money a prime motivator? If not, what is? Not this time around.. I

> have worked where the money is good but hated the job. Liking the job is

> much better.

> 4 - Is your department short handed? If so, for how long? I've been here 6

> years and its been shorthanded for longer than I've been here. We've been

> close a couple of times, but you know how it is..

> 6 - What is the worst aspect of your job? Hmmm....

> 7 - What is the best? The feeling of satisfaction that I can get every day

> despite the obviously bad stuff. The feeling that I know I was helpful to

> folks whether they realize it or not (and most times, they dont-I think)

> 8 - What area(s) of training need improvement? The fact that we dont really

> get any inservice training. It's obviously hard to incorporate it with an

> already short-staffed department. But as I just said to my supervisor, we

> need to get something..

> 9 - What serious invention(s) would help you do your job better? A question

> for someone with more of an imagination that I

> 10 - What issues has this survey not touched on that are critical? Morale

> is the one that jumps out at me.. Im sure I could think of more, but Im

> sure that everyone else will for me.

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 12/16/01 7:20:50 AM Mountain Standard Time, bfurey@...

writes:

1 - What would make your job better?

See my answer for #10.

2 - What makes a good working environment?

Lights! and plenty of them. Not just over my work station, but the whole

room lit up. and Silence! . Nothing worse then trying to talk on the radio

and having noise from others in the room drown you out.

3 - Is money a prime motivator? If not, what is?

Nope. I'm topped out so there's no longer any step increases to go through.

All I get now is when the ceiling for the pay catagory goes up. And it did

for 2002. I'll get a whole 1.05 an hour more in 2002 which is a lot better

then the .35 per hour I got for 2001.

So what is my motivator(s)? Well, I enjoy my job for starters. I enjoy

99percent of my co-workers. I'm very comfortable with my skills at my

department.

4 - Is your department short handed? If so, for how long?

No sir.. for the past 18 months we've been at full staff of 10 dispatchers

and 1 supervisor!

5 - What can be done to attract and keep employees?

If I knew that, I'd be rich and no one would be short staffed!

6 - What is the worst aspect of your job?

Hearing death.

7 - What is the best?

A daily feeling of accomplishment. Even on those days where I wished I had

stayed in bed and called off sick, something , somewhere in the day went

right.

8 - What area(s) of training need improvement?

Geography.... even in my small community, it scares me when a 4 year " vet "

of the job still doesn't know the basic address (like of the 711 store or the

only Sinclair station).

9 - What serious invention(s) would help you do your job better?

I can't think of a real item at the moment.

10 - What issues has this survey not touched on that are critical?

Attitude & dedication. When you're at the job, the job should be the most

important thing to you. No trying to raise your children or manage your

marriage while on the job. No thinking that just because YOU have

children/spouse YOU deserve weekends/nights off. No thinking that just

because YOU have seniority over a shift-mate that means you get to run rough

shod over them.

Kathy

[Guest guest]

1 - What would make your job better? The actual physical act of dispatching?

A radio system that leaves no nook or cranny uncovered.

2 - What makes a good working environment? Light, quiet, tolerable

co-workers, supervisorial consistency, chocolate.

3 - Is money a prime motivator? If not, what is? It's hard to answer this

one cuz since the beginning (25+ yrs ago) the pay/benefits have been

excellent.

4 - Is your department short handed? If so, for how long? I don't think so.

And I think we in an over-hire mode.

5 - What can be done to attract and keep employees? Once again, we have

excellent pay/benefits. All I ever see are tiny job announcements in the

help wanted part of the paper. I vote for billboards/radio/television, or

maybe a couple of O's blimps advertising for dispatchers.

6 - What is the worst aspect of your job? When my relief calls in 1/2 hour

before shift change and both my partners have Dr's notes saying they cannot

work overtime for some reason or another.

7 - What is the best? The money/benefits..without a doubt. I truly enjoy

the job and 93% of my co-workers, but it's the money.

8 - What area(s) of training need improvement? We, the snuffies, generally

do not get any job related training once we are done with initial job

training and are on our own. I mean there is no coordinated by the

administration training for all employees on the same subject.

9 - What serious invention(s) would help you do your job better? Here? A

" cone of silence " . A hearing device (other than an old square speaker) that

would let your ear breathe, yet block out background noise.

10 - What issues has this survey not touched on that are critical? Thinking

in grey, not just black and white.

Bob in Tacoma

Dispatcher

www://www.lesa.net

[Guest guest]

>1 - What would make your job better?

Get rid of the micromanagers that will not change, they always think the

" old " way is better.

>2 - What makes a good working environment?

Everyone getting along, we are all here for the same job.

>3 - Is money a prime motivator? If not, what is?

No, if that were the case I'd be working for the county agency. They make

$3.00's more an hour.

>4 - Is your department short handed? If so, for how long?

I think so, but according to everyone else no.

>5 - What can be done to attract and keep employees?

Better pay, not expect superhuman feats of a person.

>6 - What is the worst aspect of your job?

Being by myself in the radio room when all heck's broken loose.

(ie bar fight, working fires in 2 rural communities, shots fired

in a different area of the bar and a factory accident that a guy ended up

dead.)(I have had this happen in one night, YES, I was by myself that

night.)

>7 - What is the best?

Knowing that I am helping people as much as I can.

>8 - What area(s) of training need improvement?

Customer service

>9 - What serious invention(s) would help you do your job better?

Better equipment

>10 - What issues has this survey not touched on that are critical?

Stress.

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[Guest guest]

I love my current job and its got just about everything I wanted and there

are all kinds of opportuities but I'll give it a go about what does work

there for me.

<< 1 - What would make your job better? Not much.

2 - What makes a good working environment? I have a great Sgt., a terrific

manager, fabulous trainer (both of them have been so great), interesting

people to work with, training opportunities -- like once I " m off training at

the end of this month I can apply to the HRT team (because in part of my

masters in counseling) can apply to the CSID team (because I have prior

training I took on my own), they respect past experience rather than trying

to make me forget it -- they even let me use prior skills (novel concept?).

We have 4 chaplains who all do a minimum of 20 hours a month both in and out

of the station -- not that we have problems, but they are there just cause.

We have a super volunteer program where retired seniors get to continue

having somewhere to go and something important to do. Dispatchers attend

briefing, records personnel can if there is adequate coverate, the citizens

are generally really really great people. ummm, gee, if there's something

you want to see you just go to the right Sgt (not pick which one will say

what you want but the one that handles that area), express your concern or

what you would like to see like training or a project and they implement it

if its would benefit a lot of people.

3 - Is money a prime motivator? If not, what is? No -- its wasn't for me.

It is community policing, being a community in the station, honesty, a chance

to continuously function in a professional manner. One of my personal

dislikes at my old job was it was just way too big and too busy to do

consistent top level work -- you just couldn't take the time to really hand

hold in certain situations and in some situations if you did you got written

up for it. I looked at maybe 10 agencies in my search for the right job and

the department I went with makes a concerted effort to continuously provide

high level service. yes you may need to put a caller on hold but you can go

back to them. One of the mottos is " no call is too small " ......they really

try to be available on all levels of the station for citizens and staff.

4 - Is your department short handed? If so, for how long? They were for

about 2 years -- now everyone is at full staff, however, there is a proposal

before the City Council to add two more positions which will leave us two

down for a short time but only cause there are two more positions being added.

5 - What can be done to attract and keep employees? Hmmm, you know, they

listen here, they really listen. Like I was off today but went in to bring

in my secret santa gift when the person who I picked wasn't there .... and it

IS only a 4 minute commute if I hit the lights right. My Sgt went by and he

knew I had a question for him -- it wasn't pressing -- I had sent him an

email and he could answer at his convenience. Well he saw me and we spoke

for a few minutes about my question and then he mentioned something he wanted

to accomplish and he was open to hear what options I might know about it. It

wasn't that he's a Sgt and smarter than me; he is really great and comes

across like each person has something to contribute. All of the sgts seem

like that and its been my experience so far.

6 - What is the worst aspect of your job? Not having a unit right there

when someone needs one.....ok, the divorced guy who is nasty and comes in

every week.

7 - What is the best? Gee, personally the commute, the gym (I've lost 10

pounds without trying since I've been there in 2 months -- my old job I ate 3

MEALS during my shift and snacked all day long cause I was so unhappy -- now

I eat my lunch/dinner and a slimfast when I get home at night/morning), the

people. Professionally -- the level of service we provide, the team work.

8 - What area(s) of training need improvement? Gee, if you want to train or

get training in something all you need to do is ask and they see what they

can do. Its a very comprehensive supportive training enviroment.

9 - What serious invention(s) would help you do your job better? Just

practice for me right now.

<<< 10 - What issues has this survey not touched on that are critical? >>

Can't think of any -- BTW, lest anyone think I'm out to lunch on my

department, one of the Sgt's commented recently " we aren't Mayberry but we're

sure close " . And we are. We are the 5th largest city in the San Francisco

Bay area but we're still a small town.

[Guest guest]

1. What would make your job better?

A better understanding of what we do, why we do it, and where we fit

in the grand scheme of

things, but both officers and others. In my case...right at this

moment...some stability in the

department.

2 What makes a good working environment?

People...that care about the job, that share a common goal.

Understanding of the differences in

each of us, a tiny bit of appreciation for a job well done,

inclusion in the plans and schemes of

the department.

3. Is money a prime motivator?

Honestly..yes, we all are motivated to some degree by money. Is it

the ONLY motivator? No

way, if it was, few of us would be where we are.

If not, what is?

I think it is different for each of us. Some are motivated because

they see this job as a stepping

stone to their life goal of being an officer. Some are motivated

by the fact that they have to

work, the benefits are good (in many cases) and there is almost

always an opening. Some

are motivated by the desire to be a part of a team, to

participate in something " good " for the

community.

4. Is your department short handed? If so, for how long?

Hard to answer. In the 3.5 years I have been there, we have

actually increased staff. We have

2 positions open still, but there are exactly the same number of

people today as there were

when I started. Guess it depends on what you are counting...

5. What can be done to attract and keep employees?

Better pay , training, respect, acknowledgement and inclusion.

6. What is the worst part of your job?

Working alone is both bad and good. You can get swamped, but you

also know what is

going on, without having to rely on someone else to " get it

right " . The worst thing for me,

is when officers and others treat me or my people as if we are

ignorant, have no feelings or

are not important to the accomplishment of the mission. I give

officers their due, I know

their jobs are hard, filled with stress and danger...it is not a

job I would ever want to do.

I wish more of them saw our jobs for what they really are, that

they appreciated our

efforts and realized that allowing us the respect we deserve in

no way takes anything

away from them.

7. What is best?

Being there....knowing inside that I did my job, to the best of

my ability, and knowing that I

did matter, whether to one of the officers or to a citizen.

Knowing that even though I took 100

" stupid " calls, that one call that mattered, made a mark, and

meant that my day/night was not

in vain.

8. What area(s) of training need improvement?

Stress management. Dispatchers tend to emulate officers, to push

all the pain and stress down,

to hide it, til it bursts out in an uncontrollable flood.

HazMat. Especially in today's world. We need to know what to

ask, how to get the

information needed by officers/firefighters/EMTs and others. I

know that the " training " I have

gotten in hazmat is minimal.

9. What serious invention(s) would help you do your job better?

Radios without dead spots..but that is more fantasy than serious

I think.

CADs that allow you to input needed info quickly...someone said

it before, a CAD that

is designed by dispatchers and for dispatchers..with dispatcher

input before selection.

10. What issues has this survey not touched on that are critical?

Can't think of anything at the moment.

Freida

LaVergne, TN