The original article can be found in: Virgin Islands Daily News
ST. THOMAS - Emergency 911 services on St. Thomas were impacted when almost two-thirds of the dispatchers for an eight-hour shift called in sick two days in a row, but public officials on Tuesday were being tight-lipped regarding the severity of the impact.
The manpower shortage, which affected 911 call center personnel working with the V.I. Police Department, the V.I. Fire Service and the Emergency Medical Services, prompted the V.I. Territorial Emergency Management Agency to call in outside help from the Police Department to man the empty seats.
The sick calls come on the heels of a labor dispute involving back pay owed to dispatchers, according to Sen. Kenneth Gittens, chairman of the Senate’s Public Safety, Homeland Security and Justice Committee.
However, short of saying that the staff reduction was not related to a labor dispute and that no calls were being shifted to the 911 center on St. Croix, officials at VITEMA and Government House offered scant details about how emergency services on St. Thomas were impacted.
They also emphasized that critical emergency communications services have not been compromised.
A typical shift at VITEMA’s 911 call center on St. Thomas comprises five call dispatchers and sometimes includes a 911 center supervisor.
Three people called in sick for the midnight to 8 a.m. shift on Monday, and those same three employees also called in sick for their Tuesday shift, according to VITEMA Director Elton Lewis.
The sick calls left VITEMA’s St. Thomas call center hamstrung as dispatchers on the previous shift could not – by law – leave knowing their stations would be unmanned.
Personnel stayed through the night and until 9 a.m. Tuesday, when police officers trained in emergency dispatch could be brought in to relieve them, Lewis said.
“I was made aware again by the manager on Tuesday that these same three dispatchers called in sick again on the shift, causing the same situation,” Lewis said.VITEMA will retain the support of trained police officers indefinitely to fill staffing needs until the situation is resolved, according to Lewis.
Gittens told The Daily News on Tuesday that he was contacted by VITEMA personnel in March to resolve a dispute about back pay owed to dispatchers.
The back pay can be traced to early 2010 when the revamped 911 call center at VITEMA headquarters officially opened and the dispatchers became employees of VITEMA rather then the V.I. Police Department, Gittens said.
After making inquiries to the V.I. Finance Department, Gittens said, he was confident the dispute had been resolved. Finance Department staff assured Gittens last week that the back pay would be attached to the next pay check, he said.
Gittens declined to say how much money is owed to the dispatchers.
“I would be very surprised if this was a job action, because to my knowledge, that money was supposed to have been paid to them this next pay check,” Gittens said.
Lewis insisted that the sudden occurrence of illness among dispatchers was not a deliberate job action brought on by an underlying labor dispute.
“I have no knowledge of any job action. They reported sick, and by our rules they are supposed to provide a medical certificate upon returning to work,” Lewis said.
However, Lewis was clear Tuesday that not all issues had been resolved between VITEMA and dispatchers regarding back pay.
“We are working with the Department of Personnel and others to provide some assistance and to resolve some back pay issues that have been long-standing,” Lewis said.
A statement released Tuesday night by Government House spokesman Jean Greaux Jr. downplayed any effects on the call center’s ability to handle emergency call volume.
“On both days, the call center district manager took measures to ensure that the center was completely staffed at all times,” Greaux said.
“At no time on Monday or Tuesday was call center operations on St. Thomas shifted to St. Croix,” he said “At times when there are simultaneous calls to 911, once all operators are accepting calls, the overflow of calls automatically routes to the other district so the incoming emergency call can be answered timely.”
However, at least one auto accident on Skyline Drive on Tuesday afternoon left Fire Service personnel scrambling for assistance from V.I. Police officers, and dispatchers could be heard explaining that the 911 center was understaffed.
Police Commissioner Rodney Querrard Sr. deferred all questions to VITEMA, and Fire Service Assistant Director Daryl George and St. Thomas-St. John Police Chief Darren Foy did not return multiple phone calls.
