Celebrating National Public Safety Telecommunications Week

The second week in April marks the start of National Public Safety Telecommunications Week, which is dedicated to celebrating the people behind the scenes who help keep us safe. Bill Haines, a Public Safety Telecommunications Operator and CWA Local 1036 member, has been a committed public servant in New Jersey for 35 years. He got his start as a volunteer firefighter and EMT before being hired by Burlington County Central in 1999 to do police dispatch work. When we asked him why he chose to enter this career he said, “I’ve always wanted to serve the public. It keeps you humble. No matter how bad a day you’re having, your job is helping someone else who’s having a worse day.” 

Similarly, Kevin McGuigan, a Public Safety Telecommunicator for Burlington County also got his start in public service through direct action, with six years in the Coast Guard and over 25 years as a volunteer firefighter. His commitment to the job is also tied to his hope of making a difference, “I appreciate the fact that at the end of the day, we’re able to assist those that need our help in Burlington County, and that all the First Responders I interacted with get to go home to their families.”

In times of trouble, dispatchers are the first people to lend us all a helping hand. They juggle multiple roles and responsibilities ranging from pinpointing someone’s location and coordinating help, to deescalating a dangerous situation so first responders can do their jobs safely and effectively. According to Bill, “dispatchers are the coordinators of chaos. We don’t physically put ourselves on the line like first responders, but officers are also trusting us to accurately describe a situation so they’re not walking in blind.”

Public telecommunicators also work in fields like environmental protection, where their responsibilities range from protecting both the environment and our communities as they interact with the environment, as well as working closely with law enforcement in Parks and in Fish and Wildlife units. When we spoke to Jon Sisson, a Communications Operator 3 who supervises the Department of Environmental Protection’s Communications Center, he described the work as satisfying, “I go to work and make sure calls are directed the right way and that our law enforcement officers are safe. Protecting the state starts with us, we get the ball rolling to get people the help they need, and it feels good to help people.”

Bill, like Jon, made it a point to emphasize the inherent teamwork in emergency response saying, “There’s no one hero or star.” Their humility and reverence for first responders is indicative of the respect and comradery that characterizes emergency response work. Bill went on to say that being a dispatcher also means being an active community member, learning about a community’s ins and outs and the people who make it special.

Despite an unyielding commitment to service on part of telecommunications workers, dispatch is not without its challenges: “There is no routine day. You don’t get out of bed to go to work every day and think ‘it’s just another day at the office.’ The emotional, personal stress we take home adds up. Everybody makes a lot of sacrifices to do this job, whether it’s missing holidays, birthdays, it doesn’t matter. This job is a lifestyle, it’s hard to turn it off,” said Bill.  

Kevin echoed Bill’s sentiment saying, “This job has its ups and downs, and they come quickly and unexpectedly. No two incidents or calls are the same. Your biggest hope is that every resident feels you helped them out for the vast array of reasons they might have called.” In light of taxing schedules and handling distressing calls, a national survey conducted by the National Emergency Number Association found that 74% of dispatch workers struggle with anxiety, burn-out, and depression.

Although public safety telecommunications is undeniably a difficult field, public safety telecommunicators’ dedication to service is unchanged. As Bill put it, “We’re voices in the dark. I find this work very rewarding. I can’t see myself doing anything else.” 

CWA Local 1036 extends its endless gratitude to Bill, Jon, Kevin, and every other public safety telecommunications worker who helps keep our families, communities, and environment safe and healthy every day.