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04/17/1990 - Minutes Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee of the Whole April 17 , 1990 7:15 p.m. to 8 : 24 p.m. City Council Conference Room 325 City & County Building 451 South State Street Salt Lake City, Utah 84111 In Attendance: Ron Whitehead, District One; Wayne Horrocks, District Two; Nancy Pace, District Three; Alan Hardman, District Four; Tom Godfrey, District Five; Roselyn Kirk, District Six; Don Hale, District Seven; Scott Bond, Budget & Policy; Dennis Sargant, Fire Chief; Gordon W. Nicholl, Battalion Chief; Thomas J. Tallon, Deputy Chief; Emilie Charles, Executive Assistant; Mayor Palmer DePaulis; Lee King, Director of Capital Planning; Cam Caldwell, Auditor/Budget Analyst; Richard Brady, Hughes, Heiss & Associates; other City staff and members of the press. CONSOLIDATED DISPATCH AUDIT Council Chair, Alan Hardman called the meeting to order at 7 : 15 p.m. and stated that the Council would be receiving a briefing from Richard Brady and Cam Caldwell on the Consolidated Dispatch Audit. He called Mr. Brady and Mr. Caldwell to the table. Mr. Brady stated that the project team for the audit had completed the first half of the audit and had interviewed 70 to 75 percent of the staff. He stated that the personnel in the Fire and Police Departments had all filled out confidential surveys. Mr. Brady stated that for a City the size of Salt Lake where tens of thousands of calls are received, a study dealing with many issues is needed. He stated that the Request for Proposal the Council had submitted outlined approximately thirty items, but that these items could be grouped into three to four categories. Mr. Brady stated that private companies who do not address the entire issues are likely to fail, but that the fire department and a few private sources are handling their strategies very well. Mr. Brady stated that the goals and objectives for the first seven to eight months were to create a framework for resistance. He stated that the staff had questioned the consolidation and it would take some time to meet the objectives of the audit. Mr. Brady stated that the major short term goal was to increase manager time and that the long term goal was operating issues. He stated that the department's first goal is to hire a civilian manager and provide round-the-clock supervision for guidance and supervision of the employees. He stated that because most of the staff is new, the supervisor would need to modify the training and that this would strengthen the organization. Mr. Brady stated that the fire department did not agree with some of the items that Hughes Heiss had recommended because they feel that some of the recommendations would be detrimental to the department. He stated that the audit recommended a decrease in dispatchers and that if this was approved, clerical staff would be required to cover for the dispatchers when they take their break, clean-up and briefing time, which would create an hour loss time for the clerical staff per dispatcher position. Mr. Brady stated that line staffing had used vast methodologies to evaluate the staff. He indicated that they had asked questions and observed the on-the-job performance of staff, as well as having the staff complete questionnaires on their own performance and staff level. Councilmember Hardman asked why the fire department was recommending an increase in the staff size. Chief Sargent stated that they wanted to avoid stress overload by allowing 1/3 of the employees time to be spent on phone, 1/3 on miscellaneous emergency duties, and 1/3 for meals, breaks, and administrative meetings. He stated that if more people were hired, additional swing shifts could be created and the department could start to reduce administrative positions which would lead to the same conclusion of the audit report. Chief Sargent stated that cross training and cross utilization of employees is very critical and that it would take approximately one year to design the plan and incorporate the findings. He stated that the staff would need to be rotated, or the cross training efforts would be wasted. He stated that if duties were shifted, eventually staffing could be reduced. Chief Sargent stated that the Fire department would like to present the data on the changes to the Council one year after the changes have been initiated. Councilmember Hardman asked the Council if they had any further questions. Councilmember Hardman asked the Fire Department to submit a letter of their recommendations and said that the Council would schedule another meeting when the letter had been received. Councilmember Horrocks asked if the fire consolidation and rotation is an attractive option. Battalion Chief McGill stated that it is attractive, and that other large cities currently use this plan. Councilmember Horrocks asked if cross training was difficult. Battalion Chief McGill stated that it would take two to four months to complete the cross training for new employees and that cross training would create an effective utilization of staff. Councilmember Horrocks asked why a civilian manager would be selected instead of a fire department employee. Deputy Chief Tallon stated that the principle items for the job would be to maintain the computer system, and to supervise the customer service and purchasing of the department. He indicated that a civilian would be more oriented to this type of position as opposed to a sworn officer. Councilmember Horrocks asked if this position would have supervisors under him/her. Battalion Chief McGill stated that he/she would. Councilmember Horrocks asked if the individual would supervise sworn personnel. Battalion Chief McGill stated that the individual would not supervise sworn personnel. Councilmember Hale asked for an overview of the Fire Department's requests. Deputy Chief Tallon stated that they are requesting five new supervisors. Councilmember Hale asked how productivity could be accomplished with the 1/3 hour plan. Deputy Chief Tallon stated that they would not be stopping an assignment every twenty minutes, but that different assignments would be distributed throughout the day. Councilmember Hale asked if the 1/3 hour plan applied to dispatchers only or all of the personnel. Deputy Chief Tallon stated that it would be only for the dispatchers, and that this plan was being suggested because of the high stress level of the job. Councilmember Hardman stated that page 53 of the audit report mentioned cross training. He asked if cross training was being utilized currently between the police and fire departments. Deputy Chief Tallon stated that the dispatchers have been cross trained for the past year, and that this plan would involve cross training the entire staff. Councilmember Horrocks stated that this would make the departments more flexible. Deputy Chief Tallon agreed. Councilmember Hardman stated that he thought personnel in the fire and police departments had been cross trained, and that he did not realize that the people on the phones and radios had not been cross trained. Deputy Chief Tallon stated that this is why a program is being developed to cross train all of the staff. Councilmember Godfrey stated that the cross training would provide a release of stress as well as the cross training knowledge to provide adequate coverage. Deputy Chief Tallon stated that when the consolidation was completed, it was determined that it would not be a good time to complete cross training because it would have been an overload for the employees. He stated that they had decided to complete the cross training at a later time, and that now the personnel has adjusted to the consolidation and implementing the cross training seems appropriate. Councilmember Hardman asked how long it would take to cross train an employee. Deputy Chief Tallon stated that currently only new employees are cross trained, but that it would take approximately 4 months to cross train the existing employees. Councilmember Hardman asked if it would be wise to delay using the cross trained employees until everyone was cross trained. Deputy Chief Tallon stated that the cross training would be slowly phased in. Councilmember Hardman asked why the fire department wanted to go to the expense of cross training when the turnover rate is at 20%. Deputy Chief Tallon stated that high turnover rate has been caused by the consolidation because it made the employees feel uneasy, and by the high stress rate of the job. He stated that the majority of the employees are looking forward to the cross training, and that by focusing on the work place environment and staffing issues, it would pay off in the long run. Councilmember Hardman asked if high stress isn't just part of the job. Deputy Chief Tallon stated that it is a high stress environment but that the cross training would help eliminate this. Mr. Caldwell stated that the cross training is attractive due to the new organization of the dispatch center in Murray. Councilmember Hardman asked Mr. Caldwell to take over the meeting. Mr. Caldwell stated that the important issues for the Council to address are the costs involved in implementing the auditors' recommendation, and the auditor consultant/auditees relationship because of concerns and behavioral interchange felt prior to the audit. He stated that the Audit Steering Committee felt that the differences had been satisfactorily resolved and that the Client and Council/Dispatch Center feels good about the relationship with Hughes Heiss. Mr. Caldwell stated that he wanted to stress the importance of a civilian manager because the job would involve important administrative tasks and would require a good manager who was sensitive to employee needs. Mr. Caldwell stated that the dispatchers need to become customer service oriented and that if the five additional supervisors were hired, it would provide an important opportunity to strengthen the organization because each shift would have a supervisor on duty. He stated that the Council should seriously consider this option and find a way to fund the positions because the primary resource is that managerial support is needed. Mr. Caldwell stated that the audit had originally been negatively received by the employees, but that now they feel positive about the audit. Councilmember Kirk asked that if the recommendations were approved, would be more costly over the first two to three years, but after this time, the City would recover these costs? Mr. Caldwell stated that this is correct, but that the new supervisor could also evaluate the skills of the dispatchers and the need for more dispatchers. Councilmember Hardman asked Chief Sargent if he would like to respond. Chief Sargent stated that he feels good about the Hughes Heiss audit and that the new supervisor should be a people oriented individual and someone that is willing to work on items that have not been addressed. He stated that the priority should be to have a central dispatch center, and to provide life saving education for the dispatchers because emergency medical service is on the increase. He stated that the workload is increasing and that the fire department had responded to 25, 000-27, 000 calls this year compared to 19, 000 the previous year. Chief Sargent stated that hiring a supervisor would not be costly because currently the other supervisors are having to work overtime and being paid at an overtime rate, and if a new supervisor is hired, they would be paid at a regular rate. He stated that with the increase in calls, the fire department cannot take a cut in personnel and ensure adequate coverage. Chief Sargent stated that priority medical dispatching is needed to determine the need for emergency medical equipment on the calls. He stated that he would like to create a position to handle the dispatching and transfer a current fire staff member to this position. Chief Sargent stated that the audit had been essentially positive in identifying the department's problems and that he agreed a citizen should be hired for the supervisor position to get the employees involved. Chief Sargent stated that cross training would reduce the workload increase slightly, but that more dispatchers are needed to cover for breaks, lunch, meetings, etc. Councilmember Whitehead asked why the workload has been increasing. Chief Sargent stated that of the new access board for the 911 system, which traces a call even if a person hangs up, has increased responses to 911 false alarms. He indicated that many of the false alarms are placed at pay phones so the City is not able to prosecute. He also stated that the City has a normal growth of 10-12% per year and that the public needs to be educated on the EMS system instead of always using 911. Councilmember Hardman asked the Council if they had any further questions. Chief Sargent thanked the Council for the time and stated that he had enjoyed working with Hughes Heiss. Councilmember Hardman stated that the Council would appreciate a written response to the Chief's concerns and thanked the Fire department for the briefing. BOARD APPOINTMENT Councilmember Hardman asked Mayor DePaulis to brief the Council on the reappointment of Cindy White to the Tracy Aviary Board. He stated that they had received the Mayor's letter and asked if he had anything further to add. Mayor DePaulis stated that the Board is aware of Ms. White's attendance problems but that she is a teacher and that the Board had agreed to let her head a sub-committee. Councilmember Whitehead asked if the meeting time could be changed to accommodate her schedule. Mayor DePaulis stated that he did not know if this could be done. Ms. Charles stated that the Board had established the time of the meetings and that it had been written in the boards by-lines. Councilmember Pace asked why she accepted an appointment if her schedule interferes with the board meeting time. Ms. Charles stated that Ms. White had originally worked for a radio station and that now it is more difficult for her because of her teaching position. Ms. Charles stated that she would approach the board about changing the meeting time. Councilmember Godfrey stated that he had asked Mr. Snow to check on her record and that she is doing work for the board but cannot attend the meetings. Mayor DePaulis stated that he could have further research done on her efforts if the Council desired. Councilmember Godfrey stated that checking the attendance of a board reappointment was discussed at the retreat because the Council wanted to be informed if a board member was not doing the work required by their appointment. The Council decided to place Ms. White's reappointment to the Tracy Aviary Board on the agenda. The Meeting was adjourned at 8:24 p.m. mill LA) Y( DL tl;0gj OFFICE OF THE CITY COUNCIL CITY AND COUNTY BUILDING 451 SOUTH STATE STREET, ROOM 304 SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH 84111 TELEPHONE 535-7600 AGEND A' Posted: 3:45 p.m. Monday, April 16, 1990 SALT LAKE CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING DATE: Tuesday, April 17 TIME: 6: 30 p.m. , or immediately following the regular City Council Meeting. PLACE: City Council Conference Room City & County Building, Room 325 451 South State Street Salt Lake City, Utah 1) The City Council will receive a report on the Consolidated Dispatch Audit. 2) The City Council will discuss a recommended appointment to the Tracy Aviary Board. cc: Mayor Palmer DePaulis, Mike Zuhl, Emilie Charles, Roger Cutler, Kathryn Marshall, Department Heads, Press DENNIS M. SARGENT SALQ� ' rfir ".� `©11 " j Dj CHIEF OF FIRE DEPARTMENT 799-4101 FIRE DEPARTMENT 315 EAST 200 SOUTH SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH 84111 April 17, 1990 Salt Lake City Council City and County Building Room 304 Salt Lake City, UT 84111 Dear Councilmembers: The Fire Department Management has reviewed the final Audit report and find it an excellent guide for the dispatch unit. By implementing Audit recommendations, service levels to the public and users will improve. We thank the Hughes-Heiss team for sharing their expertise with us. The Department agrees with all findings except for those listed below. Our concerns follow: The Audit does not consider cover shifts for break time ( 1/2 hr/8 hr shift) , briefing time prior to the shift ( 15 min) or clean up time 15 minutes after shift (this is required by union contract) . This totals 1 hr for each 8 hr shift. The Audit recommends cutting 2 dispatchers/hour for a total of 10 dispatchers from the fire side. This would leave 5 dispatchers to handle all emergencies, enough to staff one position. On Page 33 the Audit recommends leaving at least two positions on the fire side. (This minimum standard is also recommended by NFPA 1221 and ISO dispatch guidelines. ) ▪ The Division work schedule has been interpreted incorrectly. The Audit shows cover shifts as additional staff (Exhibit III ) . • On Page 35 the Audit shows that the three fire positions ( 911, Complaint taker and Dispatcher) average 40% productivity. If two positions are cut, productivity must rise to an impossible 120%. Page 2 . The Audit has not addressed the anticipated rise in productivity generated by implementing goals of the Division (State Wide Warrants, Geofile & Data Base update, continued update of premise and target inspection information, run district and grid update) . These programs will be accomplished with 911 and fire resources. . The Audit recommends reducing 911 by one position. The 911 is designed and funded with redundancy to ensure all calls are handled. This must happen, even if another agency like VECC should go out of service. If a 911 position is lost, funds would defer to purchase of eligible 911 equipment and would not ensure the integrity of the system. (We would rather have personnel, than equipment with no one to staff it. ) This would only be a savings to the General Fund if eligible 911 equipment is currently being purchased with General Fund money. If this is so, then the funding for 911 system can be increased. . Another solution is, maintain the 911 positions and subordinate additional duties to it, thus increasing productivity and preserving system design. Sincerely, d2------ 7)7/4'ic:/- Dennis M. 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