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Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance
Schedule and dispatch workers, work crews, equipment, or service vehicles for conveyance of materials, freight, or passengers, or for normal installation, service, or emergency repairs rendered outside the place of business. Duties may include using radio, telephone, or computer to transmit assignments and compiling statistics and reports on work progress.
Also Known As:
Aircraft Dispatcher
Charter Coordinator
City Dispatcher
Dispatcher (Dispatch)
Mine Dispatcher
Paratransit Dispatcher
School Bus Dispatcher
Taxi Dispatcher
Train Dispatcher
Truck Dispatcher
Wages
Annual wages for Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance in United States
Job Outlook
Below Average
New job opportunities are less likely in the future
United States
2033 Projected Employment
215,700
0% Change From 2023
Explore Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Relay work orders, messages, or information to or from work crews, supervisors, or field inspectors, using telephones or two-way radios.
- Monitor personnel or equipment locations and utilization to coordinate service and schedules.
- Record and maintain files or records of customer requests, work or services performed, charges, expenses, inventory, or other dispatch information.
- Arrange for necessary repairs to restore service and schedules.
- Receive or prepare work orders.
- Oversee all communications within specifically assigned territories.
- Schedule or dispatch workers, work crews, equipment, or service vehicles to appropriate locations, according to customer requests, specifications, or needs, using radios or telephones.
- Advise personnel about traffic problems, such as construction areas, accidents, congestion, weather conditions, or other hazards.
- Determine types or amounts of equipment, vehicles, materials, or personnel required, according to work orders or specifications.
- Order supplies or equipment and issue them to personnel.
- Prepare daily work and run schedules.
- Confer with customers or supervising personnel to address questions, problems, or requests for service or equipment.
- Order supplies or equipment and issue them to personnel.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")