The Fairbanks City Council has voted unanimously to extend hiring incentives for the Fairbanks Emergency Communications Center (FECC) and the Fairbanks Police Department (FPD). The program, first implemented in 2019, offers a $15,000 sign-on bonus to certified dispatchers. Officials cite the ongoing need for qualified personnel and the demanding nature of the work as reasons for extending the incentives.
FAIRBANKS , Alaska (KTUU/KTVF) - The Fairbanks City Council voted unanimously on Monday night to continue offering hiring incentives for the Fairbanks Emergency Communications Center (FECC) and the Fairbanks Police Department (FPD). The incentive program was first put in place in 2019 and was renewed in December 2022 but lapsed on December 31, 2024. The council reestablishes the incentive bonus program, arguing in its language that “the FECC continues to have a need for the program.
” It targets people who are already certified dispatchers, by giving them a sign-on bonus of $15,000 to be paid in two installments — one with their first paycheck, the second after a probation period.Kristi Merideth, the FECC supervisor, explained that a full staff constitutes 23.5 people. She said there are four current openings, which include one supervisor and three dispatchers. According to Merideth, the FECC has the staff it needs to complete its mission and has continued to do so without a drop in quality of service, through having the existing staff work extra hours and shifts. “Things become difficult in our personal life, but it’s not affecting the service that we’re able to provide to the public,” Merideth explained. Geographically, its purview stretches beyond the boundaries of the City of Fairbanks and the Fairbanks North Star Borough, going as far south as Cantwell and Delta Junction. FPD, as well as Fairbanks International Airport, the City of North Pole, and the University of Alaska Fairbanks police departments receive dispatches through the FECC.According to Operations Manager Brenda Geier who has worked with the FECC for about 15 years, the call volume taken in by the center can be stressful, especially with the number of cell phones in use. She said a typical day lasts between eight and twelve hours, and that anything can happen. “You have to always be prepared for what can happen and what can be on the other line, end of that phone line,” Geier explained
FAIRBANKS ALASKA CITY COUNCIL EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS POLICE DEPARTMENT HIRING INCENTIVES DISPATCHERS
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