Residence Requirements:

THIS EXAMINATION IS OPEN TO ALL QUALIFIED EMPLOYEES OF CENTRAL POLICE SERVICES. There are two anticipated vacancies at Erie County Department of Central Police Services. The duration of all promotional eligible lists is four years from date of establishment unless otherwise indicated.

Examples of Duties:

A Senior Police Complaint Writer provides direct supervision over a number of Police Complaint Writers and/or Public Safety Dispatcher I positions, on a specific tour of duty, within a 911 emergency communications control center;

Monitors and ensures proper telephone techniques by complaint writing personnel and Public Safety Dispatcher I positions;

Operates and transcribes from logging equipment;

Types and files reports and records;

Coordinates and provides liaison with dispatchers;

Operates computer based 911 phone system and computer aided dispatch equipment;

Monitors Erie County Probation radio, makes computer aided dispatch (CAD) entries, runs information through Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) as requested by probation officers;

Assists, informs and trains complaint writers and/or Public Safety Dispatcher I positions on the job;

Coordinates activities of section with other interested agencies;

Evaluates performance of complaint writers and/or Public Safety Dispatcher I positions to ensure adherence to established standards;

Supervises all police complaint writers and/or Public Safety Dispatcher I positions during tour of duty;

Receives complaints by telephone and prepares complaints for computer aided dispatch.

Schedules personnel of the 911 emergency communications control center to maintain 24 hour a day coverage.

Qualifications:

QUALIFYING EXPERIENCE FOR TAKING THE TEST: Candidates must be permanently employed in the competitive class and must be serving and have served continuously on a permanent or contingent permanent basis in the competitive class for 12 months immediately preceding the date of the written test in the position of Police Complaint Writer or 12 months immediately preceding the date of the written test in the position of Public Safety Dispatcher I .

Notes:

The New York State Department of Civil Service has not prepared a test guide for this examination. However,candidates may find information in the publication "How to take a written test" helpful in preparing for this test. This publication is available on line at: www.cs.ny.gov/testing/localtestguides.cfm

Subjects of Examination:

Subjects of examination: A written test designed to evaluate knowledge, skills and /or abilities in the following areas:

1. Coding/decoding information

These questions test for the ability to follow a set of coding rules. Some questions will require you to code information by converting certain information into letters or numbers. Other questions will require you to decode information by determining if the information that has already been converted into letters or numbers is correct. Complete directions will be provided; no previous knowledge of or training in any coding system is required.

2. Office record keeping

These questions test your ability to perform common office record keeping tasks. The test consists of two or more "sets" of questions, each set concerning a different problem. Typical record keeping problems might involve the organization or collation of data from several sources; scheduling; maintaining a record system using running balances; or completion of a table summarizing data using totals, subtotals, averages and percents. You should bring with you a hand-held battery- or solar-powered calculator for use on this test. You will not be permitted to use the calculator function of your cell phone.

3. Radio operations and dispatching procedures

These questions test for knowledge of two-way radio systems and operations, and may cover dispatching procedures when appropriate.

4. Supervision and training

These questions test for the knowledge required by a supervisor to set goals, plan and organize work, train workers in how to do their jobs, and direct workers towards meeting established goals. The supervisory questions cover such areas as assigning and reviewing work, evaluating performance, maintaining work quality, motivating employees, increasing efficiency, and dealing with problems that may arise on the job. The training questions cover such areas as determining the necessity for training, selecting appropriate training methods, and evaluating the effectiveness of training.

5. Understanding and interpreting written material

These questions test for the ability to understand and interpret written material. You will be presented with brief reading passages and will be asked questions about the passages. You should base your answers to the questions only on what is presented in the passages and not on what you may happen to know about the topic.

NOTICE TO CANDIDATES: Unless otherwise noted, candidates are permitted to use quiet, hand held, solar or battery powered calculators.  Devices with typewriter keyboards, "Spell Checkers", "Personal Digital Assistants", "Address Books", "Language Translators", "Dictionaries", or any similar devices are prohibited. You may not bring books or other reference materials.

INFORMATION FOR PROMOTION CANDIDATES

 Unless otherwise indicated, the eligible list resulting from this examination will have a duration of four years and will not supersede existing promotional lists, if any.

RATINGS REQUIRED:  Test is rated on a scale of 100 with a passing mark at 70.  Test instructions may further divide the tests into parts and set minimum standards for each part.

Points will be added to scores of candidates who achieve a passing mark as follows: Seniority:  For each year of service in the classified service:

Less than 1 year.............................................0 points

1 year up to 6 years...........................................1 point

Over 6 years up to 11 years................................2 points

Over 11 years up to 16 years..............................3 points

Over 16 years up to 21 years..............................4 points

Over 21 years................................................5 points

VETERANS:  Disabled and non-disabled veterans as defined in Section 85, New York State Civil Service Law, will have 5 and 2.5 points, respectively added to their earned scores if successful in the examination.  You must claim these credits when you file application but you have an option to waive them any time prior to appointment.  If you have already used these credits for a permanent position in NYS, you may not claim them again.

**IMPORTANT APPLICATION FEE - READ CAREFULLY**

A $20.00 filing fee is required for this exam. The required fee must accompany your application. Send or bring check or money order made payable to Erie County Personnel Department and write the examination number(s) on your check or money order. Do not send or bring cash, as the County cannot be responsible for cash payment. As no refund will be made, you are urged to compare your qualifications carefully with the requirements for admission and file only for those examinations for which you are clearly qualified.