Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Henderson 911 Short of Dispatchers

Mike Lawrence/The Gleaner

Many people hear the call to help others by working in emergency services. But as the Henderson County 911 Center is finding out, it can be hard to keep people in that kind of job.

The Henderson County 911 Center is having a difficult time finding enough dispatchers to stay in the job of answering those emergency calls.

“In the past couple of years we’ve lost approximately a third of our full complement in our dispatch center,” says Officer Jennifer Richmond, a spokesperson for the Henderson Police Department. “People get into the job and don’t realize exactly what it entails. They’re not willing to work rotating shifts. They’re not willing to go away for the training.”

That’s five weeks of paid training in Richmond, Kentucky.

The Henderson County 911 Center is at 15 employees when it’s fully-staffed. Right now, dispatchers are working longer shifts and police officers are helping to handle the workload.

Richmond says many dispatchers find it extremely challenging once they get into the reality of the job.

“Anyone who deals with any type of emergency services, it is a high stress job," she says. "It does take a person with a certain type of demeanor to work that job,” she says.

Henderson County dispatchers start at $14.51 per an hour with benefits.