Promotional: Senior Emergency Services Dispatcher #77612

Information on the Promotional: Senior Emergency Services Dispatcher #77612 position

Fee Required:

The State Civil Service Law requires our office to collect a processing fee from each applicant. The amount of the fee is ten dollars ($10) per applicant for Each examination applied for, payable at the time of filing of the application form, by check (personal or certified) or money order, payable to the “Cattaraugus County Treasurer”. Cash Will Not Be Accepted. Applicants whose personal checks are returned for insufficient funds will not be considered as candidates. Applicants must record the Examination Number(s) and Title(s) on their checks. Refunds of fees will not be issued to applicants who are disqualified for not meeting the minimum qualifications for admittance to the examination or who do not appear for testing on the scheduled test date. Therefore, Do Not Apply for an examination if you are not sure that you meet the minimum qualifications. Application Fees shall be waived for candidates that are unemployed and primarily responsible for the support of a household or are receiving public assistance. Please contact this office for an Application Fee Waiver Request and Certification Form.

Promotion Qualifications:

Must be currently employed by the City of Olean and have three (3) years of permanent competitive class service as an Emergency Services Dispatcher.

Duties:

This work involves supervising the activities of an emergency communications center on an assigned shift. An employee in this class is responsible for assigning the work of employees engaged in dispatching emergency medical, fire, and law enforcement personnel and equipment. An incumbent is also responsible for training subordinates in the proper use of equipment as well as acceptable standards and procedures of the communications center. General supervision is received from a higher-ranking Department officer. A Senior Emergency Services Dispatcher does related work as required.

Subject of Examination:

Written test designed to evaluate knowledge, skill and/or abilities in the follow areas:

1. Coding/decoding information - These questions test for the ability to use written directions to code and decode information accurately. You will be asked to apply sets of coding rules to code information and to interpret coded information. Complete directions will be provided; no previous knowledge of or training in any coding system is required.
2. Following directions (maps) - These questions test your ability to follow physical/geographic directions using street maps or building maps. You will have to read and understand a set of directions and then use them on a simple map.
3. Retaining and comprehending spoken information from calls for emergency services - These questions test for your ability to retain specific information that is heard in calls for emergency service, such as a street address, or to comprehend spoken information from emergency service calls, such as determining the location of a site in relation to landmarks. Simulated 911 calls will be played on audio CD. Immediately following each call, candidates are given audio instructions identifying which questions they are to answer within the test booklet. The questions that candidates are directed to answer for each simulated call will not be in sequential order. Candidates will need to retain and comprehend the information and instruction provided in this portion of the test to respond appropriately to the questions asked and to determine which questions to answer. The time allotted to answer these questions will be limited. At the end of each answer period, the CD will automatically play the next call. Note paper will be provided. Candidates will be permitted to take notes and to refer to them when answering the questions.
4. Radio operations and dispatching procedures - These questions test for knowledge of two-way radio systems and operations, and may cover dispatching procedures when appropriate.
5. Supervision and training - These questions test for the knowledge required by a supervisor to set goals, plan and organize work, train workers in how to do their jobs, and direct workers towards meeting established goals. The supervisory questions cover such areas as assigning and reviewing work, evaluating performance, maintaining work quality, motivating employees, increasing efficiency, and dealing with problems that may arise on the job. The training questions cover such areas as determining the necessity for training, selecting appropriate training methods, and evaluating the effectiveness of training.
6. Understanding and interpreting written material - These questions test how well you comprehend written material. You will be provided with brief reading selections and will be asked questions about the selections. All the information required to answer the questions will be presented in the selections; you will not be required to have any special knowledge relating to the subject areas of the selections.

Candidates are allowed to use quiet, hand-held, solar or battery power calculators. Devices with typewriter keyboards, spell checker, personal digital assistants, address books, language translators, dictionaries or any similar devices are prohibited.

Seniority Points will be added to an eligible’s score as follows, based on the date of permanent appointment in the classified service with City of Olean:

Less than 1 year	0 points
1 year up to 6 years	1 point
6 years up to 11 years	2 points
11 years up to 16 years	3 points
16 years up to 21 years	4 points
Over 21 years	5 points

PARTICIPATION IN MULTIPLE EXAMINATIONS: If you have applied for any other civil service examination to be given on the same test date for employment with New York State or any other local government jurisdiction excluding New York City, you must make arrangements to take all the examination at one test site.

If you have applied for both State and local government examinations, you must make arrangements to take all your examinations at the State examination center by calling (518) 474-6470 in the Albany area or toll free at 1-877-697-5627 (press 2, then press 1), no later than two weeks before the test date. If you have applied for another local government examination with another local civil service agency, call or write each civil service agency to make arrangements. You must make your request for test arrangements no later than two weeks before the date of the examinations. You must notify all government civil service agencies with whom you have filed an application of the test site at which you wish to take your examination.

SATURDAY SABBATH OBSERVERS - HANDICAPPED PERSONS: If special arrangements for testing are required, please indicate this on your application(s).

CANDIDATES PLEASE NOTE: Your application for this test is part of the examination process. Applications must be completely filled out with all pertinent information stated. The Commission does not refer to other applications on file for additional information. Applications which do not show training and/or experience to meet the minimum qualifications will be disapproved. Vagueness and ambiguity will not be resolved in your favor.

VETERANS: Disabled and non-disabled war veterans who are eligible for additional credits must submit an application for veterans' credits. Candidates who wish to claim veterans' credits on an examination should request an application and information sheet from the Cattaraugus County Civil Service Commission. Veterans' application forms will also be available upon request at the examination center. The completed forms must be received before the eligible list for the examination is established in order to utilize additional credits. Effective January 1, 1998, the State Constitution was amended to permit a candidate currently in the armed forces to apply for and be conditionally granted veteran's credit in examinations. Any candidate who applies for such credit must provide proof of military status to receive the conditional credit. No credit may be granted after the establishment of the list. It is the responsibility of the candidate to provide appropriate documentary proof indicating that the service was in time of war, as defined in Section 85 of Civil Service Law, and that the candidate received an honorable discharge or was released under honorable conditions in order to be certified at a score including veteran's credits.

In conformance with Section 85-a of the Civil Service Law, children of firefighters and police officers killed in the line of duty shall be entitled to receive an additional ten points in a competitive examination for original appointment in the same municipality in which his or her parent has served. If you are qualified to participate in this examination and are a child of a firefighter or police officer killed in the line of duty in this municipality, please inform this office of this matter when you submit your application for examination. A candidate claiming such credit has a minimum of two months from the application deadline to provide the necessary documentation to verify additional credit eligibility. However, no credit may be added after the eligible list has been established.

This examination is being prepared and rated by the New York State Civil Service Department in accordance with Section 23-2 of the Civil Service Law. The provisions of the New York State Civil Service Rules and Regulations dealing with the rating of examinations will apply to this examination.

Applications

Applications for Promotional: Senior Emergency Services Dispatcher #77612 will be accepted up to Wednesday, February 10, 2010, and may be obtained by downloading from the following links or from the Civil Service Commission, 303 Court Street, Little Valley, New York 14755 or phone 938-2281 or 938-2317.

Application Forms

• Examination and Job Application Form
• Application Fee Waiver Request and Certification Form

Cattaraugus County an Equal Opportunity Employer