Allegheny County 911 dispatchers authorize strike on day of St. Patrick's Day parade

After previously protesting what they described as long shifts and low pay, unionized Allegheny County 911 dispatchers have authorized a one-day strike for March 12.

The strike date coincides with Pittsburgh’s annual St. Patrick’s Day parade.

Al Smith, business manager for Service Employees International Union Local 668, said workers sent a strike notice to the county. He said the county’s failure to negotiate a contract and address low staffing levels for dispatchers is part of the reason the dispatchers are striking.

Smith said staffing levels are forcing dispatchers to consistently work extra hours, sometimes 12-hour shifts. SEIU officials said 911 operators in Allegheny County were mandated to work more than 4,200 overtime shifts last year.

“You hear the horror stories about how you are going to give up part of your life as a dispatcher,” Smith said. “You can’t know when you are going to be mandated to work overtime. Our folks are frustrated and tired and weary, and they just came out of the pandemic.”

Hundreds of workers protested last week in front of the Allegheny County Courthouse calling for a renewed contract, and pressuring Allegheny County elected officials to address staffing levels.

Other SEIU-represented county employees working without a contract include ones from Administrative Services, Court Records, Emergency Services, Allegheny County Jail, Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office and independently elected offices.

Amie Downs, spokeswoman for Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald, said the contract between the county and SEIU expired at the end of last year, and county officials have met with union officials more than a dozen times.

When asked about the upcoming one-day strike, Downs said that county officials have met with union officials every time they requested.

“In the past year, we have reached agreements with 12 of 14 unions with expired contracts. Of those, 10 have been finalized and ratified and two are pending ratification,” Downs said. “The SEIU is one of just two unions with an outstanding contract. We bargain with all of our labor partners in good faith and will continue to do so.”