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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

If you have further questions not addressed here, you're welcome to contact Recruiting via email, phone or text.

3511 NE 2nd Street, Renton, WA 98056

All of our communications specialist and dispatcher positions are onsite only.
  • Multitasking (you’ll be using five monitors and typing while talking).
  • General knowledge of the geography of King County.
  • Conflict resolution and de-escalation abilities.
  • Attention to detail.
  • Able to adjust your communication style to handle each call appropriately.
  • Strong work ethic.
  • Compassion for others.
  • A desire to "solve" problems and work towards bettering your own skills.
  • Enjoy working both independently and in a team environment.
  • Capable of “embracing the gray”.
  • We wear many hats. It's not just taking calls that are life or death and intense crime. The community calls us for a host of issues and concerns, or simply when they don't know who else to call. There are many times, especially when working non-emergency, that we end up giving our callers referrals to the appropriate agency who can help them with their issues. Whether the problem is animal related, civil in nature, or questions about environmental concerns, we have to be ready for whatever call comes through our headset and treat our callers with compassion and respect while also serving our first responder community.

Eight weeks classroom training, then three months on the floor assigned to non-emergency calls. It typically takes five months before you're working on your own, but you'll continue to have a coach/mentor during the entire probationary period (one year).

Your schedule will vary during training; you'll be assigned to both day, swing, and night shifts.

We are a union facility so there is a shift bid every six months that goes by seniority. Newer employees need to be open to any schedule (days/swing/nights).

We're on a semester system and there is a yearly bid for two semesters, strictly by seniority.

The communications center is 24/7 and requires all communications specialists and dispatchers to be available to work on any day throughout the year. However, we do have options for eligible leave.

Overtime that we know we will need is posted a week ahead of schedule. Mandatory overtime is scheduled in conjunction with an employee's shift if at all possible. We try to distribute overtime evenly amongst the employees. You’ll never be assigned OT on your scheduled days off.

Currently we don't offer shift differentials.

Currently we don't offer premium pay for employees who speak more than one language.

You can view King County benefits information here: Benefits, Payroll, and Retirement Page.

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