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Owensboro-Daviess County 911 officials are facing difficulties in filling vacant dispatcher and telecommunicator positions. The department currently has six vacancies, which is a significant loss considering the amount of time and training invested in each employee.

According to the director of Owensboro-Daviess County 911, Paul Nave, it takes about a year to fully train a new dispatcher. Unfortunately, turnover is high in this field, with employees typically staying for no more than three years. One of the reasons for this high turnover is the lower pay compared to other departments. Nave has requested county commissioners to raise the starting salary to ,000 or ,000 in order to make their department more competitive.

Angel Szefi, the Lead Telecommunication and Terminal Agency Coordinator, has been with Owensboro-Daviess County 911 for 15 years. She has had to work a second job to support her family due to the inadequate pay. This is a common situation among the current employees, with approximately 80% of them having second jobs.

Despite being one of the highest paid agencies in the Tri-State, Owensboro-Daviess County 911 still loses employees. However, they are not losing them to other departments in the area, but rather to different lines of work entirely. Employees often seek more flexible schedules or a less stressful environment.

Nave emphasized the importance of their role as the true first responders. They handle emergency calls, providing critical instructions over the phone. Szefi acknowledged that the schedule, which includes holidays and weekends, may not be attractive to prospective employees. However, she mentioned that it is an unavoidable part of the job, as someone must always be available to take emergency calls.

Although Szefi has considered changing careers due to the challenging schedule and low pay, she finds fulfillment in helping people during their most desperate times. She reassures callers and directs them to safer locations while waiting for help to arrive.

Anyone interested in joining the department is encouraged to stop by and see the work firsthand, as they are constantly looking to hire new people.

(Copyright 2023 WFIE. All rights reserved.)

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