With three vacancies, Lincoln County Communications found itself between a rock and hard a place in maintaining a fully staffed work schedule. To alleviate the staff shortage, Teamsters Local 340 and Lincoln County Communications Association reached an agreement with Lincoln County to temporarily modify their work schedules. The agreement calls for a modified schedule until July 2. According to the memorandum of understanding between the county and unions, communications officers will work three 12-hour shifts and one six-hour shift per week. Communications supervisors will work rotating 12-hour shifts of two days on, two days off and three days on. 

The third communications department vacancy occurred on May 5 with Pamela Reed’s retirement. Reed worked 21 years in the dispatcher’s job. With the MOU, County Administrator Carrie Kipfer praised the communications staff and unions for their flexibility in dealing with this labor crisis. “They agreed to temporarily relax the contract language to which I applaud them. They found a temporary solution which may be extended if it works out for the staff,” she said.  

During commissioners’ May 4 meeting, Kipfer informed commissioners about another development in the communications department. Kipfer and new Communications Director Tara Doe are considering contracting with Priority Dispatch to monitor quality control for emergency medical and fire response calls. The state used Priority Dispatch recently as its audit for monitoring local dispatch communications centers’ adherence to emergency protocols. This prompted county officials to wonder if a third party monitor would increase their department’s efficiency by freeing supervisors from their quality control call monitoring responsibilities.

“If we outsourced this to a company specializing in quality control then how much would it cost compared to the salary and benefits paid to a supervisor monitoring call quality,” Kipfer said. County officials researched the subject and discovered Priority Dispatch would cost around $35,000 per year or the equivalent of a part-time employee. The county would receive a 20% discount by committing to a three-year contract. County officials believe a third party call monitor would free up supervisors to spend more time receiving emergency calls and doing other administrative duties. Commissioners took no action on the proposal as Kipfer requested time to seek more information prior to submitting a proposal. 

Kipfer reported Lincoln County’s share of President Biden’s $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan will be received sometime during the next two weeks. Lincoln County’s share is $6,776,899 and towns will divide another $3,452,841. County officials are still waiting for the U.S. Treasury to provide them with guidelines for spending the money. Kipfer told commissioners she wants to work with local and regional groups in devising a plan for the stimulus funds. She is a member of Maine County Commissioners’ Association and Maine Municipal Association. Kipfer reported both groups support working together toward leveraging the funds to expand the local impact. “We don’t want to get ahead of ourselves. It’s important to identify our needs, first, and make a good decision,” she said.

The meeting ended with two executive sessions. In the first session, commissioners met with an attorney to discuss a recent personnel issue. Commissioners reconvened and voted to retain an independent investigator for the issue. In the second session, commissioners took no action in another, unrelated personnel matter. Commissioners meet next at 9 a.m. Tuesday, May 17 at the Lincoln County Regional Planning Office in Wiscasset.