Although the city has stepped up recruiting efforts considerably for filling vacancies in its 911 call center, there are still 49 vacancies among the 104 positions, according to Maria Calagna, director of emergency communications for the Austin Police Department.
Calagna told the Public Safety Commission Monday that the city also still needs to add two supervisors, four lower-level supervisors and 16 dispatchers. Only 59 of 75 dispatcher positions are currently filled, she said.
Commissioner John Kiracofe requested the briefing because of complaints the city has received about long wait times for 911 callers caused by inadequate staffing. Calagna said she could not tell the commission how long it takes on average for a 911 call to be answered. That’s because the number varies from day to day, she said.
Austin, like many other cities around the country, has had a hard time recruiting, not only in the 911 call center, but in other city positions.
However, Calagna said APD is currently receiving three to four times as many applicants for 911 positions as they did in the past. One reason there are more applicants is that the city has increased pay considerably. Starting pay has increased an average of 28 percent, she said, and is now about $23 per hour.
In addition, the city has expedited its hiring process for 911 workers. In the past it has taken an average of 14 weeks to hire a new employee. That process now takes about 10 weeks, she said.
In order to encourage employees to volunteer for overtime, pay for working overtime before 5 p.m. is 1.5 times the regular hourly pay. After 5 p.m., Calagna said employees are paid double their usual wage. That extra pay increase started on March 1.
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Austin Police Department: the law enforcement entity for the City of Austin.
Public Safety Commission: The Public Safety Commission is a City Council advisory body charged with oversight of budgetary and policy matters concerning public safety These include matters related to the Austin Police Department, the Austin Fire Department, and the Austin/Travis County Emergency Medical Services Department."
