Operators’ reward for high stress job is often unfair criticism

By JANE LaTOUR

Every day, the city’s 911 personnel handle an average of 32,913 emergency calls — almost 12 million a year. The pressure is intense, and stress is built into the job.

Yet making a difference — doing a job that matters — appeals to the 911 staff, who are members of Clerical-Administrative Local 1549. “The idea of helping people attracted me to the job, even though it’s helping behind the scenes,” said Yvonne Herrera, a Police Communications Technician for almost 15 years.

But in the wake of the tragic events surrounding the call from one of the four missing teenagers on Long Island Sound, 911 operators faced scathing criticism.

Columnist Steve Dunleavy, who consistently stakes out the anti-union beat at the New York Post, ran a column vilifying the operators and calling for retired cops to replace them. The Post also ran a scurrilous cartoon depicting 911 operators as irresponsible clowns. And Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly publicly blamed the operator and the supervisor who handled the call.

Local 1549 President Eddie Rodriguez issued a public statement challenging the rush to judgment. “The commissioner has traditionally reserved judgment on incidents involving employees, pending the investigation. That approach would have been more responsible,” he said. The premature responses of the press and public officials overlooked the persistent problems that plague the 911 system.

Cell phone issue
On Feb. 3, Local 1549 held roundtable discussions with 911 operators. The members vented their frustration with malfunctioning equipment, inaudible calls, lack of enhanced technology to pinpoint cell phones and the sloppy system of issuing directives.

Within a week, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg called for Mr. Kelly to review the equipment and training procedures. News stories detailed the system’s shortcomings, including inadequate staffing and the delay in creating a 911 system to pinpoint the location of cell phones.

The Federal Communications Commission, cell phone companies and New York State all share a portion of the blame for the failure to implement the 911 tracking technology. Since 1991, the state has collected more than $200 million from surcharges on cell phone bills for this purpose, but the funds have been diverted to routine state police costs.

The City Council Committee on Public Safety held public hearings on Feb. 11. Local 1549 PCT/SPCT Chapter Chairperson Alma Roper testified in support of Resolution 193-A, which would provide for cities to receive their own surcharge for the 911 emergency tracking system.

“The Enhanced 911 System has been on the drawing board since 1991. This technology could potentially avert tragedies such as the Long Island Sound incident,” she said. Assistant Clerical Division Director Ron Arnero, a former 911 operator, says the tragedy “shows that management has to increase staffing so operators and supervisors can be formally trained on the directives issued by the Command.” On Feb. 14, the Police Dept. filed administrative charges against the supervisor and issued a letter of instruction to the dispatcher.

Local 1549 is defending its members, and President Rodriguez maintains that to maximize public safety, the city and the state must do everything possible to make sure 911 has the state-of-the-art technology it needs.