LATERAL EXPERIENCED Telecommunicator (911 Call-Taker and/or Dispatcher)

SOUTH SOUND 911 LATERAL APPLICATION PROCESS

This position is for individuals who have previous experience in 911 Emergency Services. If you do not have experience as a 911 call-taker or dispatcher, please apply to our entry-level position, instead.

South Sound 911 is seeking experienced 911 telecommunicators to join our team! We have concurrent LATERAL processes for 911 Telecommunicator positions (911 Call-Takers) and Dispatcher positions, with ongoing proposed start dates.

If you are interested in pursuing a Lateral career with South Sound 911, please apply by including your resume and cover letter, detailing the size and call volume of current and past agency employment, along with any other relevant information. Please also complete your personal history statement (PHS) with Public Safety Testing. Your application will not be reviewed until your PHS is complete.

Qualifications for Dispatcher & Call-Taker (Telecommunicator) Positions:

Graduation from high school or equivalent, plus two years of experience involving considerable public contact
and multi-tasking. Equivalent combination of education and experience is acceptable.

Candidates must have a minimum 2 years of experience within a 911 Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) and performed in the eligible public safety role within the past 3 years, from the date of application. 

LATERAL Hiring Process:

• Application through website, including:
  
  
  
  • Completion/upload of Personal History Statement through Public Safety Testing (online, no cost)
  
  
  • Upload Resume & Cover Letter
  
  
  
  


• Complete Dispatcher CritiCall Test (online, no cost)


• Panel Interview (in-person preferred, will accommodate virtual setting as needed)


• Fingerprinting (in-person)


• Observation (in-person, can be combined with fingerprinting session)


• Background Investigation


• Psychological Assessment (virtual)


• Position Fit Assessment (online – PXT Select)


• Final Interviews with Executive Staff (in-person strongly preferred, will accommodate virtual setting as needed)


• Medical/Drug Screen (in-person, or if out of area, can arrange for local-to-candidate testing)


• Final Offer
  
  

Incentives*:

Lateral candidates meeting the specified requirements and receiving a final offer of employment after completing the hiring process will be eligible receive the following: 

• $500 bonus at time of hire 


• $1000 bonus at year anniversary date ($1500 total incentive paid in 2 installments within first year of employment) 

If a Lateral candidate has not actively worked in a 911 public safety position within the past 3 years from the date of application, they will be not be eligible for an incentive. 

*Hiring incentive will be paid on the indicated specified schedule, on the first eligible pay date after hire, and beyond as indicated by the schedule. The hiring incentive is subject to all required taxes and withholdings. Retention of full amount of hiring incentive is contingent upon continued employment with agency. If employee leaves at any point prior to their 2-year anniversary, the following repayment schedule will apply; 

• If the employee leaves before their 6-month anniversary of employment, they will be required to repay the initial $500 incentive amount. 


• If the employee leaves before their 2-year anniversary of employment, they will be required to repay $1000 of the total incentive amount.

Starting Salary will be dependent on number of years’ experience in a 911 Public Safety Role (call-taking or dispatching), as follows: (note; each position has 5 steps within the associated pay range) 

• < 5 years’ experience – Step 2 


• 5-10 years’ experience – Step 3 


• 10+ years’ experience – Step 4

If you have any questions regarding this announcement, please contact Laura Lakowske @ 253-625-0813 or [email protected].

South Sound 911 offers the following benefits; https://southsound911.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Benefit-Info-access.pdf