The lack of qualified Chelsea residents for municipal jobs has been bemoaned by several City Councillors whenever City Manager Thomas Ambrosino brings a residency waiver request before the council.
Now, the City is looking to increase opportunities for Chelsea residents to become public safety emergency 911 dispatchers through a series of educational workshops.
In order to become an emergency dispatcher and qualify for the workshops, dispatchers must be Chelsea residents, have a valid Massachusetts driver’s licence, speak fluent English, and must be able to pass a Massachusetts CORI background check.
Two sets of three-session workshops will take place on Saturdays in October and November. Each class will be two hours long.
The first three will occur on Saturday Oct. 9, 16 and 23. The next set of sessions will be on Saturday Nov. 6, 13 and 20. The sessions will include an introduction to public safety communications, police and Fire operations overview and education, and live dispatch observations. Question and answer sessions with City of Chelsea police and fire personnel will also be available.
“Any Chelsea resident who is interested is asked to please contact the 911 office and let them know you do have an interest in taking this workshop and possibly turning that into a job,” said City Councillor-At-Large Leo Robinson. “For all Chelsea residents, it’s an opportunity if you’re looking for employment. Here’s a chance to take the workshop and hopefully by the end, you will benefit from it.”
To register, email Office of Emergency Management Director Steve Staffier at [email protected]. Interested residents are asked to include their full name, address and phone number in the email.