There is much less than it is around here. I gave her a congratulatory hug for her new opportunities and sneakily kicked her in the shins at the same time. When total staffing is 20 dispatchers, that's a chunk of schedule to cover with too few personnel. We've got two trainees right now-and you can bet it's in our best interests to see they make it through their training programs. But several pairs of eyes are upon them.
Trainees are fun, though.
One of our two current trainees set herself up for a classic moment that caused uproarious laughter at her expense. An officer called in to find out what radio identifier he should use for some overtime assignment. Without putting him on hold, she turned and innocently repeated his question to the room, giving his name as the inquirer. Oh, and it was a great training moment for the trainee, too. Similar things happen when trainees get their first truly odd calls.