LAWRENCE: Dispatchers make case to keep jobs

By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
   Lawrence Township 911 police dispatchers, faced with the prospect of having their jobs privatized as a budgetary cost-cutting measure, launched another impassioned plea to Township Council last week to scrap the proposal.
   Municipal Manager Richard Krawczun suggested exploring the possibility of hiring a private firm to handle police dispatching services in September, and a request for bids from companies that can provide the service is expected to be sent out by the end of this month.
   Township residents and the dispatchers alike have pleaded with Township Council to preserve the nine positions and to find other ways to balance the pending 2013 municipal budget. Next year’s proposed spending plan will be presented to the council in January.
   Dispatcher Sue Handelman told Township Council at its Nov. 8 meeting that “there is a lot of stress on us” because the dispatchers do not know what will happen to their jobs. She reminded the council that the dispatchers worked tirelessly throughout Hurricane Sandy, making sure that township residents and police officers were safe and had what they needed.
   Mayor Jim Kownacki said he spent time at the Municipal Building and saw what took place during the storm. He said he “saw everything in action” — the dispatchers, the first responders and the Department of Public Works crews. Everyone pulled together, he said.
   ”We are being told that our jobs are on the line,” Ms. Handelman said. “We all came together (and did what was necessary). Their jobs are not on the line. This is what we are trained to do. I care about the residents and the police officers I work with.”
   Dispatcher Dora Haines asked Mr. Krawczun, “What can we do to make this go away? Why are we the only ones who always get (dumped on). Tell me what do you want. We lost a good dispatcher to Ewing Township (because of job uncertainty).”
   When Mr. Krawczun replied that he had given the dispatchers “a round number of what I needed” to save the nine positions, Ms. Haines said “it’s not going to happen.” Mr. Krawczun told her that he knows the dispatchers are not highly paid, but the cost of their benefits is “astronomical.”
   Ms. Haines told Township Council that the dispatchers are always busy, answering calls at all hours of the day and night. They handle problems that come up, she said, adding that “I don’t want anyone to think we just transfer calls out” to the fire department or emergency medical services.
   ”I don’t want anyone to leave here thinking for one second that what the dispatchers do is trivialized or not important to me, Township Council on the Police Department’s command staff,” Mr. Krawczun said. It may not be something that the dispatchers believe, but “you don’t hear us complain or say we need to get better dispatchers,” he said.
   It is unfortunate, but township officials will have to do things differently, he said. The worst part of his job, since 2008, is being the one who has to tell an employee that the township cannot pay him or her for their services, he said.
   ”I get it,” Mr. Krawczun said, adding that he would be angry, too, if he were to be laid off. It’s not about the quality of the service, but about the cost, he said.
   ”Cheaper is not better,” Ms. Haines said.
   Ralph Handelman, who is Ms. Handelman’s son, quizzed Mr. Krawczun on the procedure being used for bids on police dispatching services. Competitive bidding is being used, which differs from public bidding because it is not based on obtaining the lowest bid. A contract is awarded to the most qualified bidder.
   When Mr. Handelman questioned whether it is “ethical” to seek bids when there are employees already in place, Mr. Krawczun replied that “ethics is following the law.” The law permits competitive contracting. The goal is to try to balance the 2013 municipal budget, he said.
   Township officials know how much it costs to provide 911 dispatching services, and the bid specifications are being designed to replicate the service that is already being provided, Mr. Krawczun said. The issue is “their cost versus our cost,” he said, adding that a competitive contract has a maximum five-year life span.
   Mr. Krawczun said that once the bid specifications have been finalized, the information will be available on the municipal website at www.lawrencetwp.com.