SPCO Meeting

The big, mandatory meeting of supervisors is over. It would seem, according to Blogmasters always reliable sources, that the suits are not pleased with present cirmcumstances on the operations floor. As a result, the suits have given orders to the spcos to "enforce" the rules and standards that everyone has acknowledged are sometimes a bit lax. In other words, folks, get ready for the big crackdown in real time. And lest anyone think this is another instance of a particular suit flexing for a moment, Blogmaster has learned that the spcos are not to be personally accountable for their subordinates according to rdos, ie, and have responsiblity for ensuring that each employee is properly uniformed, present and accounted for, and performing the duties of the job as opposed to sleeping, eating, talking on the cell phone or wandering.

Blogmaster has no objection to this in theory: it is what should already be occuring ANYWAY--it is true that the standards on the floor have been low,low, low for a long, long time. However, in times of high stress--current conditions with summer coming and the chronic short staffing that results in overtime, both mandatory and voluntary--some things are admittedly overlooked. Eating and using the cell phone at the console, for example, are not high transgressions when someone is sitting at the console for 7 1/2 or more hours a day, sometimes straight, in an effort to handle the call volume and dispatch jobs (which reflects on the watch manager).

All this tolerance, though, is about to end and its because--allegedly--a few pcos who were granted a private audience with the ed ruiz complained. They complained that the spcos were not doing their jobs, that they were failing in their duties, and that said rules were not being enforced. WTF? So in response to this, the deputy director of police operations who was present at the alleged meeting, felt compelled to make some changes in the name of accountability, hence the assignment of particular employees to particular spcos by rdo. It is about accountability, as they say. Be prepared, folks, for an influx of warnings about uniforms, smoke breaks, eating, and reading on the consoles. Be prepared, folks, for that day when breaks and lunches are cancelled and an spco comes over and tell an employees that their uniform shirt is untucked or to put away the puzzles. And to the union folks, be prepared for the influx of complaints about how such and such spco is picking on so and so, or nitpicking, or personally harassing someone for being ____ (insert race, gender etc).

In the interest of heading off any complaints, Blogmaster warns everyone, including the spcos to get the game on, use common sense, and band together. Don't say Blogmaster didn't warn everyone.

Say It Ain't So, Ron

The fix is in. Blogmaster can now say that the deputy director of police operations is in a trick bag of his own making, caught red handed in the middle of a dirty deed, with witnesses. Even with the feds sniffing around and the federal monitor all over the city personnel department, it appears that the deputy director is secure enough, or besotted enoough, to have given orders to an immediate subordinate to alter the evaluation (meaningless under any cirmcumstances)of a pco in order to make said pco more "promotible". WTF? Apparently, Blogmaster has learned, the ORIGINAL evaluation of pco was less than outstanding and, as a result, the deputy director ordered his subordinate to change said evaluation AFTER it was signed by the watch manager and without that watch managers knowledge. The subordinate, apparently having failed discretion 101, followed orders to a T. The only problem with this little scheme is that it was witnessed by others, a big no no when someone tries to do something undercover, sneaky, or corrupt. As a result, the deputy director is on the hot seat. As for the subordinate who actually did the dirty deed, Blogmaster can only hope that a fair and impartial investigation will determine the appropriate course of action.

Memo to deputy director of police operations: what were you thinking? You "campaigned" on a platform of change, yet not much is different. You have acted quite similar to your non beloved predecessor who acheived neither respect or affection from underlings. You have flip flopped on issues, you have participated in the corruption of the chain of command, and you have used your position for the gain and detriment of your underlings--actions that you swore were beneath you, yet here you are in the midst of allegations of favoritism and nepotism. Blogaster wanted to give you the benefit of the doubt, but at this point it just seem as if you are another suit, intoxicated with power. It is a very sad day at oemc. Very sad day, indeed, especially as this comes from someone we had such high hopes for.

Report Card

Hope springs eternal at oemc. Even when all evidence suggests its a lost cause, Blogmaster continues to long for that day--in the not too distant future--when oemc finally turns the corner and becomes a model of best practices, efficacy, and is run by competent and qualified suits...........

However, for the present and recent past, oemc is mired in incompetence. The present suits, apparently having learned nothing from their predecessors--all of whom were roundly and justifiably criticized for a variety of reasons by the operations floor personnel, have amply demonstrated their own incompetence in a variety of ways. "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss" as the old saying goes. Certainly it applies in this case.

The ED, allegedly a union guy himself and formerly "all around nice guy", appears to be in way over his head. The press conferences where he appears hopelessly lost, the deer in the headlights look, the arrogance combined with a profound ignorance of how the communications and operations aspect of oemc operate make for an all around cluelessness for which there is no compensation. Unlike Trotter with his politicians charisma, huberman with his undisputed brilliance, or velasquez who at times displayed a disarming and unexpected boyish charm, this ed has nothing to recommend him. Even so, Blogmaster had reserved judgement hoping to see what he could accomplish. The verdict is now in and it ain't good. A review of the record of this particular ed undistinguished reign thus far:

--failure to get additional staffing for 911 operations, even while the jobs are posted for "homeland security" and camera related positions at the oemc. The official city position is that there is no staffing shortage for operations and it doesn't even appear that anyone from oemc is privately lobbying city hall for additional staff (Blogmasters sources are very adamant on this point).

--turf wars and petty infighting have characterized this regime with the chain of command being corrupted. One good example of the recent edict, then the rescinsion, then the reimplementaion of the B clause even after the oemcs number 2 (allegedly) guy negotiated an agreement with the union. WTF? If HE didnt have the "authority" to make such an agreement with the union, then maybe he ought not to be the second in command and the ed himself should deign to speak a bit more with the union about its issues.

--continued discontent, strife, and general unhappiness among the managerial ranks which is a direct result of the top level managment style. A general unwillingness to listen to and address spco concerns. A renegade watch manager who has embarrassed the regime by officially deviating from the company line and caused untold havoc on a particular watch. A deputy director of police operations who is at odds with his watch managers and who apparently retaliated against an spco for unsubstantiated allegations and who has directed his subordinates on at least one occasion to perform unethical, perhaps illegal, actions on behalf of a pco.

These are real issues that are occurring in real time and this is only a cursory overview. The everyday decisions that are made by the suits have real implications for their subordinates, sometimes in unforseen ways. Every time a suit takes an action, or fails to take an action, it affect every employee. That is why the person at the top is so important--if he or she is ethically, morally, or otherwise challenged everything else will be tainted too.

Supervisor Shuffle

It is February. Not yet the busy time of the year, yet management has determined that the 2nd watch is short a supervisor, an odd conclusion during this time of the year and with the current distribution of spcos throughout the watches. As a result, a 3rd watch spco is being reassigned to the 2nd watch, while a 1st watch spco is being transferred to the 3rd watch. Officially, the reason is "operational needs".

This would be unremarkable, in and of itself, except that the spco being assigned to days is going under duress. That is right, said supervisor allegedly does not want to be reassigned while the spco going to 3rd watch from 1st watch is said to be happy about the move. Unofficially, Blogmaster has learned the reasons for such moves are more complicated--and much more disturbing--than simple manpower needs. This move has personal overtones and appears to be a personal attack on said supervisor. The spco going to days has been the subject of some very specific--and completely unsubstantiated--allegations of a very personal nature. As a result, management has apparently over reacted and decided to move said spco to a different watch. To make it appear more legitimate, management has also moved the second spco from 1st to 3rd watch. Management did not solicit volunteers for such moves and the spco going to days is apparantly not even the least senior spco on afternoons. It is convenient that management discovered their shortage on days at the exact same time these allegations surfaced.

This little drama has huge implications for every employee at oemc. The supervisors are unionized teamsters--albeit without a contract. They are city employees and entitled to due process, fair and impartial investigations into any allegations, and to enjoy current standing while any such investigations are taking place. This is a blatant example of the city failing to follow its own polices and procedures and of tossing its employees into the wind simply because of an unsubstantiated allegation. Memo to pcos--be careful because if the suits can do it to them, they can do it us. Memo to the suits--next time try not to be so obvious and please at least make a show of supporting your employees by waiting to pass judgement until any investigations are completed.

FINAL NOTE: the city is again appealing the unionization for spco ruling. More to come on that in a later post

Disarray on Days

What is going on with the 2nd watch? The watch manager, a relatively recent appointment and the least senior titleholder of that rank, appears to be running amok. No sooner was this watch manager assigned to a permanent watch (at the expense of a more seasoned watch manager who has been relegated to the relief position) did the wm begin with changes to long established 2nd watch practices. Long established practices that actually worked for that watch which is comprised primarily of old timers and long time veterans who for the most part know the job, know eachother, and know whats up.

But apparently this new wm felt the need to shake things up a bit, which is not necessarily a bad thing if it ultimately results in some positive changes for most everyone. However, that does not appear to be the case here as most of the changes that have been instituted have resulted only in demoralizing the workforce and creating instability on the floor. Hiring pcos back for overtime for only 2 hours on rdos (not worth the time, effort, or gas to bother coming down for), meddling with the assignment sheets, and soliciting day off group changes from partners on zones/citywides are a few examples. Rotating calltakers from their long time regular consoles while stating that calltakers "have to earn their spot" and pushing "efficiencies" (such efficiences have never been defined)front and center are more examples of the petty politicking taking place on this watch. But perhaps the most egregious is the wm attempts to implement change on days was to curtail furloughs via wholesale denials of the 5 day extensions that have been enjoyed by pcos for years. WTF??

Thankfully, someone on high had the good sense to reign in this wm on that last point and rescind that edict, but for the most part the rest of these attempts to change the watch are going unchecked. And to what end? It isn't clear what the wm is hoping to achieve by these methods and no objectives for doing them were ever clearly articulated. Sure there were some issues on days, but for the most part, it works and the day watch did not need to be "saved", "rescued" or "cleaned up". From the point of view of the working stiffs (read pcos) subject to these things, it looks like a clear case of ego and power tripping. Payback even to some pcos for slights--real or imagined--in years past. Recall one of the first, and best, tenets of good management: just because one can do something does not mean one should do something. Big, big difference.

And memo to the suits, if any read this: next time a wm, any of them, attempt to implement wholesale change to established past practices, ala the furlough extension memo that went into the co book and was later rescinded, it would be save alot of embarrassement, backtracking, and confusion if such changes were consistent among all watches and applied equally to everyone. Memo to the 2nd watch manager, if this is being read: renegading at the expense of the pcos on this watch will not win you brownie points with superiors or subordinates. The problems at oemc were not created by the wm and they will not be solved by the wm, however good are the intentions. There is a reason that the 2nd watch wm predecessors did not do the things that are being attempted now and perhaps some reflection on that would be beneficial.

Privatization Effect

There seems to be no end in sight to the city privatization plans. The chicago skyway, parking garages, and other city assets have all gone private in recent years. City services--everything from custodial duties to security at city facilites--have slowly been outsourced, privatized, or phased out. During the privatization era the city has estimated to have shed thousands of jobs and saved millions of taxpayer dollars. The latest assets on the block are the parking meters and potentially the biggest asset ever privatized: midway airport.

This latest effort at privatization ought to make oemc employees sit up and take notice--all of the employees. It is no secret that the city sold off the equipment at oemc a long time ago in a lease back deal and Blogmaster cannot even be sure that the city retains rights to either the actual building itself or any of the technology contained within (Blogmasters sources indicate that its a combination of complex public/private partnerships between the city, motorola, sbc, and a few other entities). The only thing that the city retains a 100% vested interest in, according to said sources, is the personnel. And that can change at any time, if the midway deal flies.

That is because midway airport presently retains approximately 200 city jobs, several of which are aviation communications operators (acos). These acos are essentially dispatchers and calltakers, are currently part of the oemc, and are covered by ibew local 21 unit 2 in bargaining, must abide by the same contract, and are paid grade 13--the same as pcoIs. In short, they ARE us, albeit at a different location and doing the exact same work in different circumstances.

The city has publicly stated that under any such deal all midway city employees would receive "substantially similar" jobs at comparable pay while maintenance and emergency services (police and fire only) would remain the same. In other words, folks, the midway dispatch operations appear to be going private. Blogmasters sources advise that existing acos at midway will likely be transferred to ohare if they so choose or be forced to reapply for their jobs with a new entity if they stay and not necessarily be given any hiring preferences in an open pool of applicants.

If this little experiment at Midway proves successful and public safety does not appear to be compromised, can the pco privatization be far behind? After all, oemc pcos are some of the highest paying non supervisory, non management civilian positions to be found anywhere on the city payroll. And no college required (not yet anyway). And if the pcos are phased out--say to privatization at some later date--there would be no need for spcos, operations watch managers, the deputy director of police, and other support staff and on and on and on. The building itself could be turned completely over to the homeland security faction while 911 operations are moved offsite under private ownership. Using camera, satellite, and other highly developed technology it is not inconceivable that police dispatch could be conducted in the suburbs, downstate, or even abroad. It would be outsourcing at its best and daley appears to be the trailblazer in this regard. And so it goes.

Fear Factor

It is February. Call volume is down as it generally is at this time of the year and theoretically it’s the time of the year for operations floor employees to slow down, take a breather from the holidays and regroup before it gets busy again as the weather warms up. The lull before the storm, as the saying goes. Except that there is no lull this year and there hasn’t been for the past several years. The lighter workload hasn’t translated into more downtime, more relaxed employees, or better morale. Instead it has brought new elements to oemc: fear and to a lesser extent, instability.

At the very lowest levels (pcos)this fear permeates the oemc and results from the lack of leadership on the 4th floor and in the corner offices. This is because the suits have resorted to dealing with any issues on the operations floor by overreacting (attempts to curtail furloughs extensions, canceling rdos around certain events/holidays etc.)and by imposing heavy handed discipline in response to any citizen complaints--without regard to the contract, due process, facts, circumstances, or a pcos work history. This is the result of being governed by political hacks without, in most cases, even the most fundamental knowledge or the understanding of communications and the day to day operations within oemc.

The fear manifests itself in a myriad of ways. Fear that one can or will lose his or her job for not sending the police on every call, even when something is not a police matter. Fear that questioning a caller too much will result in a complaint from a juiced up citizen and lead to discipline. Fear that calling in sick one day too often will result in a few days suspension. Fear that ones time due will be denied, or that a rule that was interpreted one way last week will suddenly be another way this week. In short, pcos are often afraid. In certain circumstances, fear may be a good way to operate in the short term--fear can sometimes impose a grudging respect upon the fearful, but in the long term it wears down morale, sends inconsistent messages as to whether the city follows its OWN policies and procedures, stifles creativity/flexibility/innovation, and fosters negative attitudes toward all aspects of the job. In terms of the job, the end result is that pcos have lost all discretion as to what types of calls should be processed and what calls should be redirected or dismissed as non police/cfd matters. That means, dear reader, that even prank calls, calls that are likely bogus, and children playing are processed by calltakers and dispatched by the pcoIIs. In terms of the working environment, this fear leads to lowered morale, increased divisions within the ranks, and unfavorable perceptions of management--perceptions which may never be overcome.

The instability within the oemce results from the transient nature of the suits, the petty little turf wars, and the meddling into day to day operations by outsiders. Suits who expect to use oemc as a launchpad to bigger and better (maybe) gigs; suits who use the pcos and operations floor as their pawns for political payback of their rivals (it happens); and interference from city hall or the 4th floor into things like day off group assignments, details, or watch selections. Perhaps its a sign of how dated Blogmaster really is but there was a day--in the not too distant past--where these things were not issues and when operations were comprised of a tight knit professional civilian group who knew their jobs very well. And their bosses knew they knew it too. And those bosses appreciated it. No longer. Welcome to the 21st century.

Funches Fire

As noted, Blogmaster occasionally responds to reader comments left in the post sections. The Funches fire, which occurred in the 11 pm hour of 24 September 2004, left the reverand funches 3 children, plus a fourth child, dead. The reverand and his wife were not home at the time and the fire appears to have been ruled accidental. A tragic, unfortunate occurance for which Blogmaster and many others were very sorry about. Many of us attended the funerals and donated to the funches memorial fund set up at US bank, even though the finger pointing had already begun and settled on oemc. And unlike many in the community, and outside of it, few of us questioned the circumstances in which those children were alone in the house without their parents at that time of the night.

That is because almost immediately after the fire, the blame game started. According to published reports, several witnesses claim to have called 911 about the fire, only to be laughed at, hung up upon, or left hanging because no operator ever answered. The city, investigating such claims, has publicly identified 19 incoming 911 calls regarding the fire beginning at 11:25pm and ending at 11:27 pm. City records allegedly indicate that cfd was on the scene of the fire within 3 minutes of receiving the first call. An official city inquiry into the funches claims of non response indicate that one call, handled by an oemc fire calltaker, was not properly processed and that said calltaker did indeed hang up on caller, classifying that call as a child prank. The calltaker was put on paid administrative leave and the city has contended that because the improperly processed call was the THIRD call about the fire, cfd had already been dispatched and that this particular call had no bearing on response time. As a result of these allegations, and other purported evidence, the funches retained counsel and sued the city. Blogmasters sources reveal that several former and present oemc/city suits were deposed, interviewed, and/or subpoenaed regarding this incident, including ibew local 21 business agent jerry rankins

The recap of these events now bring Blogmaster back to our dear reader and Blogmasters direct response to comments left in the post. Blogmaster is sure that the reader did not attempt a blanket indictment of the calltakers and dispatchers at oemc and honestly, Blogmaster believes it is a stretch for ANYONE to claim that the children died "as a result of poor staffing within the oemc and overworked, overstressed calltakers and dispatchers". The children died as a result of an accidental fire in their house, period, the cause of which cannot by any stetch of the imagination be linked back to oemc. However, dear reader, the point about understaffing is a valid one and it deserves to be addressed, especially because this site and other sources directly associated with oemc have been crying mismanagement and understaffing for a long, long time.

Cameras, Cameras, Cameras

"In the thousands" That, a direct quote from oemc ed Tony Ruiz, as published in the Chicago Tribune editorial on sunday 10 feb 2008, when asked how many cameras are monitoring the city. Of course he would not be more specific when pressed, and the editorial goes on to point out that citizens and alderman have demanded immediate replacements for their cameras when they go out of service for repairs or upgrades. The piece also states that "chicagos system (cameras) is open to inspection by visitors at the city's 911 center on West Madison Street."

Really? Really? And really? The editorial concludes that because such cameras are not physically intrusive the public has largely accepted them (and they have withstood certain court challenges) while "early fears of Orwellian spying have evidently dwindled". Well that is a pretty stunning conclusion, actually, and coming from the editorial pages of chicago's more conservative paper not wholly unexpected. But is it true? And if the more reputable of the two major papers actually ENDORSES the camera use, it just gives king daley--and his dukes, earls, and barons--more support for diverting city resources away from other areas and into the camera business. That means more jobs, more contracts, and more patronage most all of it secret.

First, it is an open question as to whether the majority of the citizens and taxpayers are aware to the extent of the camera network-certainly even many of the employees on madison street don't even have any idea and apparently the ed isn't talking. Thousands? That is a lot of cameras folks. Watching everything from "potential terror targets", cta and cha property, open air drug markets, and traffic intersections. It remains to be seen, as the editorial points out, whether the cameras actually do anything to prevent or solve crime and apparently no one is even asking those questions anymore. To date, there doesn't seem to be any widespread, independently credible, evaluation of the camera program--no cost/benefit analysis, no studies proving camera x or y solved a crime, and no evidence that a terrorist attack was thwarted due to the cameras. Really, the biggest acheivement that can be attributed to any camera program is plugging a $20 million hole in the citys budget (thanks to the traffic cameras).

But why let a small thing like efficacy get in the way of another government program funded by the taxpayers (remember even federal and homeland security money is taxpayers). OF COURSE the alderman and city suits like the cameras--it allows them to claim they are doing SOMETHING without having to do ANYTHING. It also provides citizens with a false sense of security, those that are not smart enough to know better. More smoke and mirrors, folks.

As for the papers assertion that the 911 system is open for visitors, Blogmaster hopes they erred; last we checked the oemc was SUPPOSED to be a closed, secure facility. But come to think of it, "open to inspection" might explain why the parking lot is still full of unauthorized cars and the building has an influx of people walking around there in civilain clothes.

Lane Bryant Murders

"911 CALL ENRAGED GUNMAN AT LANE BRYANT STORE" So goes the front page headline in the Daily Southtown Star of saturday, 09 Februrary 2008. Thus far, police are still describing the horrible murders of 5 women at a lane bryant store in tinley park as a "botched robbery" and as of this writing, no one is in custody.

The headline, only a small part of a very sad story, is telling. As the paper writes, "Mcfarland (one of the victims) was able to get to her cell phone and call police, the killer heard the dispatchers voice. THe irate gunman then began opening fire on the prone women". Though it is not explicitly stated, the implication leads one to believe that the dispatcher actually HEARD these murders in real time. Published reports indicate that responding police were on scene within minutes, but not quickly enough to save any of the deceased victims nor catch the killer.

Stories like this bring home again the perilous nature of the work that is done on a daily basis at oemc and emergency call centers all over the country. Although rare, such calls do happen (Blogmaster can recall several in chicago over the years, including live suicides, females being killed by their men, people shot, and tragedies like E2 and the high rise fire at 69 w washington. Recall the call center employee who received the call from hijacked flight 93 on 11 sept 2001.) Certain calls that captured murder and death live on audio and it is not pretty, glamorous, or exciting. One never knows if the NEXT call they take will be the one that results in real tragedy for someone and leaves the calltaker feeling totally helpless because there is nothing--nothing--that can be done at that moment other than possibly providing aid and comfort to the victim if the circumstances allow. Even the responding field units are not often given such up close and personal portraits of a victims last seconds and believe it, these are the types of calls that stay with one forever.

The pcos at oemc, fortunately, never lose sight of the importance of the work that is done there even when the suits treat the agency like a cash cow, a dumping ground for hacks, and fail to understand or appreciate what it can be like dealing with the public day in day out.

To the 5 victims of this tragedy, RIP. Blogmasters thoughts and prayers are with the families and with the police officers and agencies working the case.

Furlough Extensions

Here we go again. The last time it was the power watches that were eliminated; the time before that it was revamping (and not for the betterment of the EMPLOYEES) of the established 6 day work week; the time before that it was limiting full period furlough segments, even if and when individual segments in a particular period were still available; the time before that was severely curtailing furlough segments in the 7, 8, and 13 periods; the time before THAT it was furlough selections by watch, rather than by straight time in title.............

Blogmaster refers to, of course, managements attempts--once again-to address the staffing shortage at oemc on the backs of the existing pcos. Of course, we all know that the elimination of the power watches and complete period furlough segments was a complete failure (thanks MK)and have since been reinstated. Ditto the pathetic attempts at an alternate workweek schedule (note to future suits who attempt to take this on again-and it is only a matter of time--that when one contemplates eliminating the less than ideal current structure, it is usually prudent to replace it with something equal or better than what is currently enjoyed). But the one area that management has enjoyed some success--from a manpower standpoint--is tampering with furloughs. Hence the new edict from kb.

The memo in the co book, dated 09 February 2008 and signed by the wm unilaterally denies furlough extensions to every member of the 2nd watch without "mitigating circumstances". Effective immediately, all such furlough extensions must be pre approved and all such requests for extensions must be submitted via to/from 14 days in advance. WTF???????????? 14 days in advance?? This from bosses who routinely fail to advise pcos whether their requests for comp time due have been granted until the day prior, sometimes the DAY OF. This, from the same wm who contacted a pco AT HOME, by telephone, to advise said employee that pcos 5 day furlough extension--that had already begun by the way--had only been approved for 4 days and that said pco would have to report for work on a certain day that fell in the MIDDLE of the furlough extension? THIS is the best that can be done on the 2ND WATCH no less? Adding insult to injury is the blatant fact--penned in her own memo--stating that this is a result of "manpower shortages". In short, WE have to pay for their mismanagement and continual under resourcing.

Don't be fooled folks. It is another determined effort by the suits to fix a problem that really has only one solution: more staffing--hiring more pcos to bring the oemc up to minimal staffing levels. But every executive director since trotter--huberman, velaszquez, and the in-way over-his head ruiz--have been unable to sufficiently make the case to the powers that be at city hall that we need more staff. Instead each suit tows the city line and allows his (and really, we haven't ever had a "her") minions to shill out the company spin about how no, really, we have enough people and we are currently staffed at adequate strength and yada yada yada. Staffed adequately enough to watch the remaining pcoIIIs, 3 or 4 of the old time spcos, and many of the old time coppers marched right out of the building and never replaced. Staffed adequately enough to continue to allow 20+ current pcos to work detailed off the floor in non operational capacity while every other pco picks up the slack. Staffed adequately enough to handle "any contingencies". PLEASE.

Blogmaster predicts this too will go by the wayside, but unfortunately, not before enough people are really harmed by it. One of the perks of this job--the few, very few perks--is furlough. Even newbies with the minimum number of vacation days can stack up pretty decent time off through combinations of rdo, v days, and comp time. If it were not so serious, it would be funny.

Priorities and Policy

Smoke and mirrors. That is an apt description of the city's approach to police work, homeland security, and emergency operations, despite the best efforts of the men and women who actually do the dirty work known generically as "public safety". In chicago, emergency operations are critically under resourced and woefully mismanaged. Yet the spin that comes from city hall, madison street, and headquarters appears to provide citizens with inflated expectations and unrealistic notions about what the city, oemc, and cpd can actually provide during times of crisis, collectively or to one's immediate well being at any given time.

The oemc/cpd "priority" system for processing 911 calls and categorizing by them in order of importance is an integral part of the smoke and mirror phenomenon. Of necessity, incoming calls are assigned a "priority" to determine the order in which they will be dispatched for servicing by a field unit. These priorities are predetermined by criteria set forth by cpd and stress preserving life over property and the maintenance of public order/safety. The priority system exists, of course, because there are simply not enough field units to respond to every single call for service immediately. As a result, alot of people just have to wait and herein lies the problem: no one wants to wait. In fact, almost nobody ever believes that their call is not the most urgent, most important call anyone took all year.

And believe it, folks, calltakers have heard it all: "I pay taxes" "I pay your salary" "the police station is right around the corner" "what do I have to be dead for you to come?" "oh after someone is killed are you gonna show up?" "I bet you would come if we were ____" (insert race, gender, neighborhood). This type of animosity, Blogmaster believes is partly the result of the aforementioned spin coming from these agencies that do nothing--NOTHING--to lessen the expectations of callers. Everyone it seems, is entitled to cpd right now. Beat meetings, community forums, and other public events promote this misguided notion by reinforcing the idea of calling 911 for everything and pass the buck between agencies (cpd blames oemc; oemc blames cpd; cfd, s&s, cta are all at fault for this or for that etc.) but never stating the obvious fact that high demand for services far exceeds the ability to provide services. And Blogmaster would bet the average citizen in this city has no idea--none--how their calls are processed and prioritized.

The suits have this game down to a science. Promise everything to everyone all the time, sound credible and look good while saying it, and then blame everyone else when the pyramid crumbles. Divert the money--millions and millions of dollars--which COULD provide additional resources. Provide jobs and contracts for friends and cronies, most of whom are not qualified, and line one's own pockets via kickbacks and under the table deals. Smoke and mirrors folks.

3 in 1 hodgepodge

Memo to chicago city council re "alleged cop set up costs city 195k" as reported in chicago sun times 05 Feb 08: Please. Please. Please. Just because it is not your money does not give you all the right to toss it to any joe shmo. If you, the city council finance committee, have issues with the alleged "victim" of police misconduct how about refusing to approve the payout? How about saying NO? How about sending it back to corporation counsel for a full explanation and further investigation? You, dear finance committee, have just set another precedent for lying phonies to claim anything for a buck and receive a payout (which by the way, is about equivalent to the starting salaries for 4 rookie police officers) with no proof. In so doing, you have removed the burden of proof from the claimant and simply taken the easy way out by approving said settlement with no conditions or explanation. Shame on you for not having the guts or the backbone for refusing this shameful case and just rubber stamping it.

Memo to the dear reader (taxpayer) expressing frustration and incredulousness at the overtime: Blogmaster feels your pain. Really. As a taxpayer, resident, and citizen Blogmaster is incensed at ANY inefficiencies operating in city agencies. Sadly, however, that is more the rule than the exception and it's even more sad that the public and the employees accept inferority and mediocraty as normal. But the reality, at oemc anyway, is that we have enough hard working, good, really dedicated pcos who pick up the slack. If its you, your family, or a friend, your calls DO get answered and are serviced, even the stupid ones. The ones about the barking dogs, the teens congregating on the street, the cars running the stop signs--even when you and they wish to be anonymous and when WE all know you have almost no chance of actually seeing cpd. It says alot more about how well the oemc is run IN SPITE OF the suits not because of them.

Memo to spcos: Hang in there and hang tough during your negotiations and force the city to respect you. You have a lot of support from the rank and file here--we understand you are only one layer above us in the dung heap. And while we have issues--many issues--with the suits and with management, we by and large respect you
(mostly) and dont blame you for this messy morass. We appreciate the fact that you have no incentive, no support, and no inspiration from YOUR bosses--we know because we feel exactly the same way. Good luck to you.

Overtime, Part II

"within the next 3-5 years, we may experience a large retirement of senior staff members....staffing shortages on watches have created the need for a lot of overtime, exension of tours, and cancellation of time due requests. Personnel are accumulating alot of time due that cannot be used and that is creating a long term liability for the city. As more overtime is assigned and more time due is cancelled, sick days increase and morale goes down. Employee burnout looms on the horizon"

Sound familiar? That is a verbatim quote taken from the executive summary of the OEMC Task Force Report, dated October 1998. Yet it could describe the oemc of 2008 just as easily, because NOTHING HAS CHANGED. The primary problem at oemc, the chronic, underlying problem is a critical staffing shortage that is likely to get worse--much worse--before it ever gets better as pcoIs retire after having done the requisite amount of time in the new pay grade.

And that is the real story folks--the staffing shortage. Yet it just won't die. Cltv and the other media outlets have picked up on the overtime story published in the Chicago Sun Times that highlights the fact that 237 employees have made in excess of $10,000 in overtime in 2007, all the while ignoring the implications and the bigger picture here. And that is twofold: 1)the oemc is woefully under resourced and mismanaged which results in this type of overtime at great, great cost to taxpayers and 2) the city has willfully and deliberately ignored most of its own recommendations with regard to the operations of the oemc as identified as long ago as 1998. The more things change, the more things stay the same.

Overtime and the B Clause

It's back. The B clause has officially been reinstated and will be implemented effective 05 February, despite management's previous commitment to honor its side agreement with the union that was settled to by one of its own suits--see previous posts. And once again, this reinstatement was done on the sly, with no warning to spcos, operations personnel, or the union that it was coming.

This is another example of the general untrustworthiness of the city and the suits at oemc, an agency run mostly by folks with no integrity and who are for the most part clueless about operations. Blogmaster senses this is a reactionary movement on their part to deflect criticisms about overtime that were published in the Chicago Sun Times on 04 February. It is no coincidence that the same day it is publicly reported that overtime exceeds $10,000 for 237 operations floor employees the city responds by reintroducing the B clause in a pathetic attempt to save a few bucks.

Of course the suits cannot simply admit they are actually under resourced, under staffed, and occasionaly incompetent, despite that being exactly the case apparent to every single spco and pco on the floor. Instead, watch the spin that will be coming out of oemc as the suits will blame SOMETHING--not themselves or the suits downtown for FAILING to adequately staff--for the astronomical overtime. It will ultimately be the fault of the union and the contract. It will be because the city has to abide by the contract that allows the most senior pcos to rack up overtime and does not give the oemc any flexibility with regard to how overtime is hired back or whom it is alloted to. In this way, the suits will be able to deflect the real issue from lack of staffing to the union as everyone in the media gets all worked up about city employees making in excess of 100k annually. Blah, Blah, Blah.

Don't fall for it. Blogmaster is tired of this game too, the blame game that puts all of the oemc problems on the operations floor (pcos who "hold" jobs for dispatch; pcos on the medical; pcos who don't take enough calls; spcos who don't nitpick about the small stuff; spcos who don't browbeat the pcos) and not enough back onto the suits for abrogating their responsibilities to their employees, the citizens, and the taxpayers. It is the suits who are in a position to request more staffing (and have the data to prove it); it's the suits who are ignorant of day to day operations and how they impact employees; it's the suits who are unfamiliar with the union contract and often disregard precedent, policy and procedure; and it is the suits who excel at hiding oemcs problem within the confines of madison steet.

SPCO Promotions

Unofficially, the word is that promotions to spco will occur sometime before autumn, with the process set to begin sometime around May. While Blogmasters sources are mum about the exact dates, it will likely be a relatively quick process once the formalities start. Blogmaster suspects this is because the next round of promotions has already been pretty much decided, before a single interview is ever conducted. Not unlike the last time when several qualified pcoIIs were bypassed in favor of a few blatantly less qualified pcoIIs.

The challenge for management, this time around, is finding a way to justify their spco hires in a climate controlled by federal monitors, inspector generals, and much savvier pcoIIs. Blogmaster would hope the city has learned its lessons, but the cynic is us invariably doubts it, and expects any promotions this time around to include paybacks for previous favors, insurance and assurances for future favors, and a continuation of the current power struggles among the suits at oemc ("my candidate vs your candidate").

Because ultimately no one--NO ONE--believes its about the best people for the job. There is not now, nor has there ever been, a clear path for promotion or an identifiable career ladder for pcos. There have been no efforts made for current spcos, or other suits, to mentor, groom, or prepare pcos for promotion. Indeed, the suits have kept mum about the results of the last promotions with regard to test scores, interview rankings, and other feedback, declining to allow any pcoII to review or discuss their past performance with personnel or members of the interview panel--a clear slap in the face for any pcoII wondering how he/she fell short or how to improve for the next time. It is all a big secret that is no secret at all.

Blogmaster predicts that when the time comes, those interested in promoting will see a dummy interview panel set up, similar to the previous one, with the strings being pulled from on high. Look for the most gullible suits to be seated on the panel and watch while they pretend to interview each candidate with objectivity. And because this is the city, Blogmaster can bet that at least some of the pcoIIs will be secretly prepped beforehand on exactly how to perform on any and all portions of the promotional process so that they can ace through it. Because it isn't like we all don't KNOW one another already, don't know what our strengths and weaknesses are, and what we are all capable of and who really knows the job and who does not. We already seen this movie, folks, and it stunk the previous times too.

Jody, Jody, Jody

Blogmaster welcomes new superintendant Jody P. Weiss to his new duties which officially began this weekend after he was sworn in. And although this is not the first time Blogmaster has written about the new sup, its time to reiterate some of our hopes for the new titular head of emergency communications which encompass oemc.

Staff--oemc desperately needs more pcos to man day to day operations. And we are not talking about excessive staffing here, only enough to maintain MINIMAL operational needs without an over reliance on overtime, especially mandatory overtime which everyone knows will increase as soon as the weather warms up.

Training, and integrated operations--pcos need increased and better training in a variety of areas, including handling potential terrorist/natural calamity incidents on the phones. Also its about time someone seriously addressed the outdated and antiquated way that cpd/cfd split up the 911 calls. Is it really the most efficient--and in the best interest of callers (read taxpayers)--method to process a request for an ambulance by tying up 2 highly paid calltakers on one call? And how about reopening the lines of communication between oemc and cpd so that each agency has some input when certain of its actions effect eachother?

Morale--Blogmaster understands that the new sup is rightfully focused on the primary mission of cpd, but its prudent to factor oemc into certain strategic and operational decisions, and this would include thinking carefully about employee movements at the higher levels. Placing new suits into the chain of command, creating new positions, or changing the business as usual model at oemc in order to affect changes down the ranks.

Blogmaster hopes that whatever positive changes the new sup brings to cpd will spill over into oemc, because we sure do need something different.

Blogmaster Responds

It isn't often that Blogmaster responds to postings that were left in response to the commentary. However, it appears that Blogmaster struck a nerve with at least one reader who felt compelled to reply to the post about the training division.

First, dear reader, please go back and reread said post carefully. Blogmaster is not now, nor then, diparaging the pcos or the spco assigned to the training division--its not about them. The issue itself transcends any one detailed person and most reasonable people understand that. Awards, citations, certificates, et al, are admirable, but are by no means confined to those pcos serving in those posts. There are many, many pcos who have racked up files of paper for services rendered. And many more who deserve to but simply haven't had the good fortune to be recognized. The cynics out there might even point out that recognition in the form of an award--for simply doing one's job well--is meaningless. And while Blogmaster has no problem with those particular folks in the training division--most ops employees don't have a problem with them--it would be nice just the same to see the pcos back on the floor occasionally working (this goes for other detailed positions as well). But Blogmaster understands this is a management decision and not up to them.

Regarding the training notices, sops, directives, etc, the reader again misses the point. If there is no input from training--the people who know the job intimately--then it is questionable as to where operational information is derived from, because it doesn't come from the pcos or the spcos on the floor in any formal way. It is like the union--the stewards represent the floor (for good or bad)--and the union relies on them for decision making and operational decisions. The training division is supposed to function in the same way in a healthy agency and Blogmaster would HOPE this is the way its done here. But maybe not with all the dysfunctions.

Public education and infomation is the responsibility of the agency. Blogmaster appreciates and concurs with the readers suggestion of attending beat meetings and community affairs--anything helps. But ultimately its not up to individuals--who by the way are NOT authorized to speak officially for the oemc--to do this. Blogmaster does not want some of the less seasoned, less than stellar pcos out there giving information out to the public anyway. The training division--with all its highly decorated, knowledgeable veterans--is the best "face" for oemc. Think about it because it is EXACTLY what the mission of the division ought to be (in part).

Roll call training is necessary and welcome, if there are legitimate issues. Again, its not about the TRAINERS, it is more about the topics--what is the point in having an SOP on calltaking courtesy, controlling the conversation, or providing service when the city blatantly disregards its own policies (suspensions to prove it)--and the issues surrounding whatever the topic at hand is. Seriously, if the trainers cannot handle a bit of rancor in roll call presenations--the spcos get it all the time--then Blogmaster respectfully suggests that says alot more about THEM than it does about the operations floor pcos.

The comparisons data referred to is useless on its own. It only becomes helpful when put into context and used to develop strategies to assist with the job--a task that reasonably would fall to the training division. Blogmasters sources also indicate that no real effort is made at collecting, storing, or analyzing any data anyway--the spcos had to research alot of this stuff themselves for their upcoming contract negotiations.

Finally, thanks to the reader for pointing out that they are actually working on new methods for teaching newbies--that is welcome news. Ditto for stress management, although Blogmaster is partial to the massage therapists who come in occasionally. The ultimate point here is NOT about dogging trainers but enough people have come and gone through the ranks of the trainers to reveal a lot of the flaws in the system. And the fact remains that there IS alot of downtime there and it might be worth thinking about how better to utilize the manpower assigned there. Without resources, there is not much anyone can accomplish even with the best intentions. Yet the suits expect an under resourced agency to perform miracles with no support and who continually reward incompetence and mismanagement among its upper ranks and wonder why morale is low and oemc remains a bastion of negativity.