Emergency Dispatchers (MSEA-SEIU 1989) Call on Mills Administration to Address Staffing Shortage
911 dispatchers (MSEA-SEIU 1989) at the Department of Public Safety are calling on the Mills Administration to provide better pay and benefits in their new contract in order to fix a dire staffing shortage. Emergency dispatcher Brocke Robinson said in a recent video that the staffing shortage has gotten so bad that instead of working eight or ten-hour shifts, dispatchers are working multiple 14 -16 hour days with only an eight-hour break in between shifts.
“If you call because your loved one is unconscious and barely breathing, that minute could change the outcome of that person’s life, especially in rural areas,” said Robinson. "And if you’re tired, the chance of making a mistake or making a wrong judgement call is higher. We pray that’s never the outcome, but that’s the reality of the situation.”
The dispatchers are not alone. A 2020 state market study of all state jobs found that base pay for state employees is consistently below market average compared to similar work in the private sector. In tough negotiations with the Mills administration in 2021, MSEA members negotiated wage improvements in the current two-year contract, but wages are still not competitive enough with the private sector.
Other state executive branch MSEA members in negotiations include employees in the Departments of Corrections, Health and Human Service, Public Safety, Administration and Financial Services, Maine Revenue Services, Education and Labor as well as the Bureau of Motor Vehicles and Centers for Disease Control. The workers have identified four core demands at the negotiating table including:
- Recruit and Retain Staff — closing the pay gap, fixing the broken classification system and addressing needs like training and orientation;
- Work Life Balance — addressing the need for time off, flexible work schedules, better access to the ability to work from home and improvements to leave time like bereavement;
- Fairness and Equity — more access to promotions, fairness in applying work rules and conditions, equitable access to training and support, and workplaces free from harassment, bullying and discrimination;
- Healthy and Safe Work — from the right staffing to do the job to workplaces safe and free from asbestos, mold and other toxins, to time and support in dealing with trauma at work.