Telecommunications Operator

South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice; Columbia (SC); On-site; USD 42,000 - 52,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Public Service Loan Forgiveness

Employee Assistance Program

Health, dental, and life insurance

15 days annual leave

13 paid holidays

State retirement plans

TicketatWork & WeSave discounts

Job summary

The South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) is seeking a dedicated Public Safety Dispatcher to respond to emergency and non-emergency calls, dispatch public safety units, and operate dispatch functions across radios, computers, camera surveillance, and NCIC 24/7/365.

Mission-driven role with a focus on youth safety and agency operations, requiring strong communication skills and the ability to work rotating 12-hour shifts, including nights and weekends.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent required.
• Entry-level work experience with voice communications systems or central switchboard operations.

Responsibilities

• Monitors radio channels for distress calls and dispatches public safety resources as needed.
• Provides supplemental video surveillance monitoring and notifies supervisors of irregular activity.
• Notifies personnel of emergencies in accordance with agency guidelines.
• Maintains logs of radio transmissions and dispatch activities.
• Conducts scheduled radio checks to ensure safety.
• Maintains SC CJA/SLED/FBI/NCIC certifications.
• Enters court orders and warrants into NCIC and assists in recapture efforts.

Job description

Job Responsibilities

If your goal is to build a career that makes a difference and you have a passion for making a difference in the lives of South Carolina's youth, consider joining the dedicated people of the South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ).

Mission

It is the mission of the South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) to impact and transform young lives, strengthen families, and support safer communities through targeted prevention and rehabilitation.

Job Purpose

Under general supervision, performs highly responsible duties to involve responding to emergency and non-emergency calls for the agency, outside law enforcement, fire and emergency medical services; identifies and dispatches public safety units as appropriate; complies with agency policies and procedures to ensure the safety of all PSOs, agency staff and offenders and the public. Operates dispatch functions through a communications network to include radios, computers, camera surveillance, and NCIC 24/7/365.

Job Responsibilities

• Monitors radio channels for distress calls throughout the Department and dispatches public safety resources to assistance calls as needed.
• Provides supplemental video surveillance monitoring throughout the institutions; notifies institutional supervisors of rules violations or irregular activity.
• Notifies appropriate personnel of emergencies or other non-routine incidents in accordance with agency guidelines.
• Maintains accurate log of radio transmissions, handwritten logs of dispatch daily activities and statistical data.
• Conducts scheduled radio checks on the institutions and on-duty patrol officers to ensure juvenile/staff safety.
• Maintains SC CJA/SLED/FBI/NCIC certifications.
• Conducts wanted person checks on juveniles, employees and contingent employees as requested.
• Enters court orders and warrants into NCIC.
• Assists in the recapture of offenders, through NCIC and disseminates notification to appropriate law enforcement agencies.
• Tracks monitoring systems issued to offenders in recapture efforts.
• Enters Transportation Security Administration flight specifications for armed officer travel approval.
• Preregisters sex offenders as court mandated in accordance with SLED/ state guidelines and requirements.
• Other NCIC duties as assigned.
• Provides temporary and/or replacement ID cards to current employees confirming identity and employment status.
• Conducts fingerprints on all new employees and/or contract employees and completes fingerprint cards for SLED background check processing.
• Creates badge profiles, photographs and enters identifying information within the agency badge system.
• Ensures employee information forms are completed on all new employees, and new employees are provided with their Identification cards during new employee hire.
• Deactivates employee ID cards upon exiting the Agency.
• Purges separated employee files while retaining current employee files for record retention.
• Serves as the agency receptionist after hours, weekends and holidays (during normal working hours as needed).
• Demonstrates exceptional customer service in assisting visitors.
• As an essential employee, must be available for on call emergency recall response, if needed.
• Receives incident reports via agency email and the Event Reporting System.
• Reviews reports and determines a categorization of Priority 1 and Priority 2 incidents.
• Enters emailed reports into the ER system in accordance with policy and departmental protocol.
• Disseminates notifications and incident report numbers via email and/or telephone.
• Performs additional related job duties as assigned by the Public Safety Director or a Supervisor.

Minimum And Additional Requirements

STATE MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS: A high school diploma and entry-level work experience with voice communications systems or central switchboard operations. An associate degree in a technical communications discipline may be substituted for the required experience.

Additional Requirements

• The ability to obtain Class IV Telecommunications Operator Certification through SCCJA and retain skills from on-the-job training is essential.
• Requires considerable knowledge of the Federal Communication Commission rules and regulations pertaining to the transmittal of public safety information on a shortwave radio or teletype.
• Knowledge of the procedures and practices associated with the operation of modern communications systems.
• Skill in the operation of complex electronic communications equipment.
• Ability to function effectively during emergencies and periods of heavy communication traffic.

Essential Employee

Must be able to work 12-hr rotating shifts 24/7/365.

This position performs job duties relating to the custody, control, transportation, or recapture of youth within the jurisdiction of the Department of Juvenile Justice, and the employee may have direct and indirect contact with youth within the jurisdiction of the Department of Juvenile Justice. Training applicable to these duties will be provided.

• Must be able to stand for prolonged periods of time to fingerprint and process agency staff and offenders.
• Must be able to communicate on the radio and phone.
• Must be able to effectively operate a computer and use a variety of databases to locate and share information with requesting agents/agencies.

Preferred Qualifications

PREFERRED AGENCY REQUIREMENTS

A high school diploma, experience working in a public safety dispatch center, analytical experience, or an acceptable equivalency approved by the Division of State Human Resources.

Must possess or obtain a Class IV Telecommunication Operator certification issued by the Law Enforcement Training Council in accordance with Title 23 of the Code of Laws of South Carolina 1976 within one (1) year of employment.

Additional Comments

The South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice offers an exceptional benefits package for FTE positions that includes:

• Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Health, dental, and life insurance
• 15 days annual (vacation) leave per year
• 15 days of sick leave per year
• 13 paid holidays
• State retirement plans and deferred compensation programs
• Discount Programs such as TicketatWork and WeSave

Applications are incomplete if you fail to answer all supplemental questions, education, and work history. Incomplete applications are not referred to hiring managers. Applications are accepted until 5:00 p.m. on the stated closing date.

You will be asked to provide a certified transcript if selected for a position requiring a degree. A background investigation will be conducted that may include but is not limited to, criminal records, driver's license, and child abuse registry prior to an offer of employment. Additionally, a medical examination and drug testing may be required. Please provide an explanation for any gaps in employment. A resume may be attached to your application but not substituted for completing the work history section of the application.