Call taker vs emergency operator

The differences between call takers and emergency operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a call taker has an average salary of $38,776, which is higher than the $38,458 average annual salary of an emergency operator.

The top three skills for a call taker include computer aided dispatch, taker and CAD. The most important skills for an emergency operator are emergency situations, emergency operations, and emergency services.

Call taker vs emergency operator overview

	Call Taker	Emergency Operator
Yearly salary	$38,776	$38,458
Hourly rate	$18.64	$18.49
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	11,539	52,229
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 30%	Bachelor's Degree, 42%
Average age	39	39
Years of experience	-	-

Call taker vs emergency operator salary

Call takers and emergency operators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Call Taker	Emergency Operator
Average salary	$38,776	$38,458
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $51,000	Between $26,000 And $56,000
Highest paying City	San Mateo, CA	-
Highest paying state	California	-
Best paying company	City of San Antonio	-
Best paying industry	Government	-

Differences between call taker and emergency operator education

There are a few differences between a call taker and an emergency operator in terms of educational background:

	Call Taker	Emergency Operator
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 30%	Bachelor's Degree, 42%
Most common major	Criminal Justice	Business
Most common college	-	-

Call taker vs emergency operator demographics

Here are the differences between call takers' and emergency operators' demographics:

	Call Taker	Emergency Operator
Average age	39	39
Gender ratio	Male, 26.0% Female, 74.0%	Male, 41.1% Female, 58.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 0.9% White, 72.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 0.9% White, 72.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	17%	17%

Differences between call taker and emergency operator duties and responsibilities

Call taker example responsibilities.

Manage truck and equipment inventory, rental tracking and GPS monitoring.
Dispatch all patrol officers and fire departments.
Enter confidential info through NCIC directly under SLED/FBI.
Place outbound calls to advise members of eta.
Dispatch need help such as fire ems and law.
Receive emergency calls and route calls to patrol units.

Emergency operator example responsibilities.

Manage busy company switchboard, operating PBX or private branch exchange systems to facilitate connections.
Utilize CCTV system to monitor and record activity in and around the facility.
Answer emergency calls/dispatch police fire and sheriff, enter and cancel stolen property and vehicles, run criminal history
Certify by APCO as a nationally recognize emergency dispatcher.

Call taker vs emergency operator skills

Common call taker skills

Computer Aided Dispatch, 15%
Taker, 13%
CAD, 8%
Data Entry, 5%
Customer Service, 5%
EMS, 4%

Common emergency operator skills

Emergency Situations, 23%
Emergency Operations, 19%
Emergency Services, 11%
EMS, 8%
Computer Aided Dispatch, 7%
Emergency Response, 6%