Nature of Work

Are you a confident, enthusiastic, motivated professional who wants to make a difference and support your community? Apply now for one of our What-Comm 911 Dispatcher positions. Qualified candidates are safety oriented, skilled at decision making, problem solving, and conflict resolution. What-Comm 911 Dispatchers_ will be required to have the ability to work independently to support and assist both the department and the public._
Applicants interested in this position must complete testing through Public Safety Testing. Please visit the Public Safety Testing website (www.publicsafetytesting.com) for information regarding the testing process.

Salary Information:
$25.69/hr - What-Comm Dispatcher-in-Training
$27.24/hr - $33.49/hr - What-Comm Dispatcher (fully trained)
Employees receive step increases annually in accordance with the What-Comm (Police Dispatchers) Collective Bargaining Agreement and City policy.

City of Bellingham employees receive medical, dental, and vision insurance as well as life insurance and long-term disability. Additional benefits include flexible spending accounts, a medical insurance opt-out program, and access to our employee assistance program. All eligible City employees are enrolled in a Washington State Department of Retirement Systems pension plan. Additionally, employees may elect to participate in the City’s 457 deferred compensation retirement savings plan.

Employees will receive 12 paid designated holidays. In addition, they receive three paid floating holidays each year. Employees accrue 8 hours total of contract and state sick leave per month in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement and Washington State Law. At the time of hire, employees will accrue 7.34 hours of vacation per month. Vacation accruals increase based on years of service. Leave accruals are based on 1.0 FTE, accruals are pro-rated if part-time and require employees to be in paid status at least 120 hours/month.

For additional information regarding benefits and compensation Information please visit the following:

• Labor Agreements, Pay Schedules and E-Team Employee Handbook - City of Bellingham (cob.org)
• Employment Benefits - City of Bellingham (cob.org)

This process is an open and continuous examination. Applications will be reviewed as they are received on an ongoing basis. Candidates will be notified of their rank and score regularly as incoming applications are reviewed.
This recruitment process will create a Civil Service register that will be used to fill anticipated vacancies. This position is represented by a union.
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JOB SUMMARY:*A Public Safety Dispatcher receives and processes telephone requests for police, fire and medical emergency response. The person in this position determines the nature, urgency and jurisdiction of a call and either dispatches public safety personnel and equipment to the scene of the emergency or transfers the call to the appropriate jurisdiction. The Dispatcher enters information from the caller and responding units into a computer-aided dispatch software program and continually updates the status of those responding to the incident. The What-Comm Dispatch center serves as the Public Safety Answering Point for Whatcom County. The center also serves as the activation point for the AMBER Alert Plan for North Puget Sound.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

• Receives, prioritizes, and routes emergency telephone calls from the public to appropriate jurisdictions. Enters the nature, location and source of the emergency call into a computer terminal using computer-aided dispatch software. Retrieves and evaluates information from the computer-based on knowledge of dispatch and emergency response procedures, status of available emergency responders and familiarity with major roads, local businesses and geographic features. Relays call information and/or dispatches appropriate Police personnel to the scene of the reported incident.
• Enters and receives information such as wants, stolen vehicles, missing persons and runaways from a computer terminal with a nationwide law enforcement database and transmits requested information to law enforcement personnel in the field.
• Communicates with a variety of agencies including US Customs, Canadian Customs, WSP, US Border Patrol, USCG, Homeland Security and Whidbey Island Naval Base regarding warrant service and resources that the agencies have available for emergencies.
• Regularly contacts and updates status of field units according to established procedures and protocols. Contacts various resources as requested by field units.
• Receives non-emergency telephone complaints and inquiries from the public. Determines the nature of the call based on established procedures and either refers the caller to the appropriate agency or enters the call in the computer and dispatches units according to the priority and urgency of the call.
• Staffs the NAWAS phone and notifies Whatcom County Department of Emergency Management of changes. Notifies San Juan County of all situations that may affect them.

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WORKING ENVIRONMENT:*
The work is performed in an office environment at a computer workstation using different desktop computer systems, a multi-line telephone system and extensive radio communications equipment to receive, input and process urgent information. Frequently take calls from extremely upset citizens requesting an emergency response. Citizens are sometimes hostile or relate very unpleasant situations in graphic detail. Workload intensity varies considerably from one minute to the next and requires frequent swings from urgent independent decision making to cooperative teamwork through a self-directed workgroup, with guidance from the Deputy Director.
The working environment includes:

• Rotating shifts covering 24 hours a day, seven days a week, including holidays.
• Frequent changes in multi-jurisdictional policies and procedures, periodic workstation relocation and changes in equipment availability.

Experience and Training

• A minimum of one year of experience in a position with intensive public contact.
• Keyboard entry skills at a minimum of 40 wpm net.
• Experience or training in the use of computer software such as word processing, spreadsheets, database management, desktop publishing programs or other business/educational software preferred.
• Experience using multi-line phone systems preferred.
• Must acquire within first year of training a working knowledge of the geography of Whatcom County to include: cities and towns, locations and names of highways, main streets, major buildings and businesses and establishments such as names of parks.
• Previous experience in public safety dispatching preferred.

Necessary Special Requirements

• Must be able to obtain and maintain ACCESS certification within three months of hire.
• Must obtain and maintain Telecommunicator 1 & 2 certifications within twelve months of hire.
• Must pass a hearing evaluation prior to hire.
• Must pass a Police criminal convictions records check, background investigation, psychological exam, and polygraph exam prior to hire.
• Must pass a pre-employment drug screen.
• Must have a telephone at place of residence or a cell phone.

Selection Process

**You are encouraged to print a copy of this job announcement for your reference as the process moves along.**

Public Safety Testing offers multiple dates and locations to complete testing; refer to the PST calendar for testing locations/dates. All testing will be facilitated by Public Safety Testing.
Step 1: Applicants interested in this position must complete testing through Public Safety Testing. Please visit the Public* Safety Testing *website (www.PublicSafetyTesting.com) for information regarding the testing process.

Step 2: This is an open and continuous examination. Candidate scores will be pulled from Public Safety Testing weekly.

Applicants must complete the written exam through Public Safety Testing. The City of Bellingham will use the scoring criteria recommended by Public Safety Testing.

Step 3: Candidates will be invited via email on a weekly basis to complete a City of Bellingham Employment Application. (Please note: if you do not hear from us within one (1) week of testing with Public Safety Testing, please contact Human Resources at (360)778-8229; the personal history statement (PHS) is due by the date/time you apply.)

Step 4: Candidates that meet the minimum qualifications will be placed on a ranked eligibility register based on the Public Safety Testing score, worth 100% of the final score. Candidates will be notified of final score and rank.

The top scoring 15 candidates or the top 25%, whichever is greater, will be referred to the Department for final assessment.

Each candidate placed on the Civil Service Eligibility Register will remain on the register for 2 months from the date of their placement on the register.
Example: John Smith was placed on the eligibility register on April 24, 2022 and will remain on the register through June 23, 2022 while Sue Jones was placed on the eligibility register on May 10, 2022 and will remain on the register through July 9, 2022.

Please Note: Candidates will receive updates regarding application status via email. Please be sure to check your email frequently.

Equal Opportunity:
Our environment is characterized by respect for cultural backgrounds, belief systems, and ethnic diversity. The City of Bellingham is an Equal Opportunity Employer and values diversity in its work force. We do not discriminate or make decisions on the basis of an individual's race, religion, creed, color, national origin, sex, marital status, age (40+), disability, retaliation, sexual orientation or gender identity, honorably discharged veteran or military status, status as a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking, use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability, or any other basis prohibited by local, state, or federal law. All are encouraged to apply for employment.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $25.69 per hour

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