professional  careers

Emergency Communications Operator (ECO) position is

full time, hourly basis

• Any additional hours outside your normal scheduled time are considered overtime
• Work (3) 12 hour shifts and (1) 6 hour shift weekly, 2 hours of overtime
• Days (6:00 am – 6:00 pm)
• Nights (6:00 pm – 6:00 am)
• Two week schedule rotation allows for every other weekend off

Overtime

• Recorded as time and a half
• Can be taken as pay or comp time (subject to approval)
• Numerous opportunities for voluntary overtime, in

        addition to mandatory overtime

Retirement

• Defined Contribution Plan
• 6% employee contribution, 6% employer match
• ICMA 457 plan option
• 5 year vesting for employer contributions

Insurance

• Health/Vision/Dental/Life (Optional)

Vacation Time

• 16 hours after 6 months
• 8 hours accrued per month, credited to vacation balance each January
• 8 additional hours accrued each year for years 5-19 (maximum 216 hours)
• 11 paid holidays

Sick Time

• 8 hours of sick time accrued for each month of service
• Unlimited sick leave carryover
• Sick leave conversion to personal leave available once 50 hours are accrued

Maternity/Paternity Leave

• 1 day without charge to sick leave for childbirth
• Up to 40 hours of paid parental leave
• Does not count against vacation time or sick time

Training



• 2 week dispatch academy training
• Comprehensive in-house training
• Paid training to meet State 911 Committee (SNC) telecommunicator training standards
• Up to 11 weeks of on the job training for each of 4 segments (Calltaker, LEIN, Police Dispatch, Fire Dispatch)
• Shadow and burn-in period following completion of each segment.
• Average 18-24 months to complete first 3 training segments and move to ECO2 pay scale

• Must have a high school diploma or GED
• Possess good moral character
• Possess good reading, writing, and typing skills
• Be at least 18 years of age
• Possess a valid driver’s license

• Answer emergency and non-emergency calls for service
• Enter information into a computer aided dispatch (CAD) program, to be relayed to dispatchers and first responders
• Assess the location, nature, and severity of the incidents and dispatching police/fire/medical personnel with an eyeon first responder safety at all times
• Ask targeted questions, such as to determine the type of help needed, howsevere and/or potentially dangerous the situation is, and what level of response is needed
• Need to be able to keep callers on the linecalm and safe, in order to monitor situationsand update first responders, as necessary
• Provide critical public safety information tofirst responders from various secure databases
• Use CAD to assign incidents to specific units, accompanied by a radio broadcast that briefly summarizes the nature of the incident, the units responding, and any directly pertinent, or time-sensitive, information that ought to be conveyed before first responders arrive on the scene
• Use various secure databases to performavariety of tasks for persons throughout the police and fire departments
• Available to work nights, weekends, and holidays

• Apply online: Click Here
• Civil Service Exam and Job Specific Testing
• Complete and submit Personal History Statement within 14 days of receiving
• Background Pre-screen
• Oral Board Interview
• Backgrounds Assigned
• Background Investigation and Interview Completed
• Final Oral Board Interview with Dispatch Personnel
• Recommendations for Hire
• Conditional Offer of Employment

Crime Scene Technicians (CSTs) work on a hourly basis

• Any additional hours outside your normal scheduled time are considered overtime
• CSTs work 10 hour shifts
• 1st Shift (7:30 am – 5:30 pm)
• 2nd Shift (5:00 pm – 3:00 am)
• 3rd Shift (10:00 pm – 8:00 am)
• There are two Latent Print Examiners who

are also assigned to this unit; this is a

promotional position that works during the

day (in four 10 hour shifts)

Overtime

• Recorded as time and a half
• Can be taken as pay or comp time
• Available opportunities for overtime

Training

• Numerous opportunities for additional training
• 12 week field training program
• 4 weeks with each shift
• Probation is one year
• Various refresher and new courses offered

throughout year

Retirement

• Defined Contribution Plan
• Employer Contribution of 6.0%
• Employee Contribution of 6.0%
• ICMA 457 plan option

Insurance

• Health/Vision/Dental/Life (Optional)

Vacation Time

• Start with 80 hours of vacation
• 8 hours accrued for each year, thereafter

(maximum of 200 hours)

Up to 320 hours can carry over from year to year

• 12 paid holidays

Sick Time

• 8 hours of sick time are awarded for each month of service
• An unlimited amount can carry over

Maternity/Paternity Leave

• Up to 80 hours of paid leave
• Does not count against vacation time or sick time

• Must have a bachelors degree in a hard science (biology, chemistry, etc) or a related field, such as criminal justice
• Must possess a combination of education, training, and experience related to the forensics field
• Possess good moral character
• Possess good reading and writing skills
• Be at least 18 years of age
• Possess a valid driver’s license

• Respond to crime scenes and process them for evidence
• Write reports documenting actions taken related to scenes and incidents
• Collect evidence pertinent to the incident or crime committed
• Photograph and document crime scenes
• Analyze evidence
• Hand sketch and measure crime scenes
• Recreate crime scenes, in a computer aided design program, for presentation purposes
• Create computer sketches of suspects
• Testify as an expert witness in court
• Attend, and document, autopsies related to crimes in the city of Grand Rapids
• Available to work nights, weekends, and holidays

• When positions are open, apply online here.
• Civil Service Exam and Job Specific Testing (ranked based on score)
• Complete and submit Personal History Statement within 14 days of receiving
• Background Pre-screen
• Background Assigned
• Background Investigation and Interview Completed
• Final Oral Board Interview with Forensic Personnel (ranked based on score)
• Recommendations for Hire
• Conditional Offer of Employment