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Dispatchers and city employees urge council to address pay, staffing and aging radios
Summary
Multiple city employees and union leaders told the Simi Valley City Council on June 23 that low pay, chronic vacancies and outdated radio equipment are stretching public-safety and maintenance services and increasing costs for the city.
Madam Mayor and members of the Simi Valley City Council, community members and city employees urged the council on June 23 to address low pay and staffing shortages that they say are harming public safety and municipal services.
Speakers said the city’s dispatcher ranks are short, radios are failing and turnover is costly. “In the 1 year I've been here, 7 people have left the department due to the low pay, the mandatory overtime, and the constant pressures of being over understaffed, underpaid, and overworked,” Simi Valley Police Department dispatcher Paris Murphy told the council. Murphy said each departed hire costs the city “approximately $50,000 to hire and train.”
The appeals came during the public-comment portion of the council meeting and were echoed by union leadership and other department employees. “Respect for city employees must be visible in action, in policy, in fair pay, in budget priorities, and in how this body chooses to engage with its workforce,” Vivian DeLuca, president of SEIU Local 721’s chapter in Simi Valley, said during her three-minute statement.
Why it matters: Dispatchers and other frontline staff are central to response times and core services. Murphy told the council the department would need 17 people to staff a fully staffed 24/7 dispatch center; she said the department currently has nine full-time dispatchers, some still in training. She also described an “exponentially” rising 911 call volume and repeated radio failures for which parts are no longer manufactured.
Details from speakers and staff: - Staffing: Murphy said 17 dispatchers would be needed for a fully staffed 24/7 center; the department has nine full-time dispatchers (some still in training). - Turnover cost: Murphy estimated a hiring and training cost of about $50,000 per departing employee. - Equipment: Murphy said radio equipment is “so old, they no longer even make the parts necessary to fix the broken pieces,” a safety concern she said could endanger officers and the public. - Broader city workforce: Sanitation and street-maintenance employees also urged higher pay and improved working conditions. James Reyes, a sanitation worker, and Manuel Morales, a street maintenance worker, described long-term understaffing, low pay relative to nearby employers, and mandatory standby expectations they said are difficult to sustain.
Council response and next steps: Council members thanked the speakers and, in remarks from Council member Litster, said the concerns were heard and would be shared with the city manager and public-works and safety staff. No policy or budget action was taken at the meeting; council members indicated they expect staff follow-up and possible future agenda items.
Ending: Speakers asked the council to consider concrete steps—wage adjustments, recruitment and retention strategies, and replacement of life-safety equipment—to reduce turnover and restore capacity. The council did not vote on any of the requests that night.
