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Dickinson County 911 and HR report staffing shortfalls; unemployment charge rate to rise
Summary
County HR reported a rise in unemployment charges and a higher state unemployment rate allocation for 2026; new 911 director Amber Piper said dispatch is short‑staffed and could run single‑person shifts in September while hiring continues.
Dickinson County officials reported workforce pressures across public safety and county departments in the Aug. 20 meeting.
Marsha Schneider, the county human resources director, said the Department of Labor set Dickinson County’s 2026 benefit charge rate at 0.23 percent—up from the 0.10 percent the county budgeted. Schneider said the calculation includes charges to the employer account and a government‑rate adjustment factor; year‑to‑date chargeable unemployment payments to the county had totaled $21,786.
In a separate presentation, Amber Piper, the county’s newly appointed 9‑1‑1 director, said she had been on the job about a week and a half and was working to hire and train dispatchers. Piper said the center would be “down to 4 of the 9 dispatchers” at the end of the month, with only one in training, and warned there could be days in September when the center runs a single dispatcher on duty. The director said the most recent recruiting round generated nearly 15 applicants and two candidates were in prescreening and drug testing with hoped‑for hires starting by Sept. 1.
Why it matters: Reduced staffing in dispatch and corrections can affect response and operations; the higher unemployment charge rate increases the county’s payroll cost estimates for next fiscal year. Commissioners asked HR to monitor job‑turnover trends and for department managers to identify non‑compensation drivers of turnover such as supervision or scheduling.
Next steps: HR and the 9‑1‑1 director said they are moving forward with candidate background checks and training scheduling. Commissioners asked staff to provide more detailed vacancy and turnover trend information as part of budget preparations.
