Tucsonβs troubled 911 system is in βcritical but stableβ condition after the sudden resignation of its top boss after a year on the job, the new interim leader said.
Jamie OβLeary, director of the cityβs Public Safety Communications Department that operates 911, recently quit the $175,000-a-year post 14 months after she was hired.
βAfter much deliberation, I have decided to tender my resignation,β OβLearyβs Jan. 12 letter to the city manager said. βCompelling personal family needs require me to return to Oklahoma,β she wrote.
The city offered OβLeary $15,000 for moving expenses to relocate to Tucson from Oklahoma City, where she previously served as that cityβs 911 director.
The timing of the departure coincides with an upcoming 90-day review of how much progress has been made in fixing numerous problems at the cityβs 911 center including high turnover, low morale, overcrowding and inadequate training and supervision.
The shortcomings were identified last fall in a $40,000 consultantβs study in which 911 employees described OβLearyβs leadership style as βdominance, anger (and) sarcasm.β
City Manager Michael Ortega, who hired OβLeary, would not comment on whether the pending progress report was a factor in her exit. βI do not comment on personnel matters,β he said.
For now, the 911 system, which handles about 4,000 calls a day, is being led by the Tucson Police Departmentβs second-in-command, Deputy Chief Chad Kasmar.
βIf I was a doctor, I would say weβre critical but stable,β Kasmar said in an interview.
A high-functioning 911 system is supposed to be able to answer emergency calls within 10 seconds 90% of the time, but local operators are only able to reach that goal 75 to 80% of the time, Kasmar said.
βRight now weβre asking for patience during peak call periods when it might take a little longer than we want,β for a 911 operator to answer, he said.
Kasmar said progress is underway but much work remains to fix problems that have festered since 2017, when the city consolidated police and fire dispatchers into one location without creating additional workspace for the resulting larger workforce. According to the consultantβs report, employees reported having two very distinct cultures under one roof and βan inherent rivalry between those serving the Tucson Police Department and the Tucson Fire Department.β
Lane Mandle, a city spokeswoman, said the construction project has been a complicated by the need to create false floors over intricate wiring and technical installations. The pandemic also created a work slowdown that affected the timing, she said.
Like many communities nationwide, Tucson suffers from a chronic 911 staffing shortage that has only grown worse during the pandemic, Kasmar said. The local system is authorized for 165 personnel, but only about 110 are available for duty in any 24-hour period, he said.
A number of workers have quit over lack of child care during the pandemic or due to concerns their cramped workplace βmakes it almost impossible to be socially distant,β he said. The department also had a coronavirus outbreak among employees last summer.
The larger quarters are expected to be ready in September. Kasmar said a package of other changes is being considered, including upgrades to training and recruitment practices and pay raises for personnel who now make $15.32 an hour for high-stress work.