Communicator - Trainee

New Zealand Police is working with the community to make New Zealanders be safe and feel safe. With over 13,000 staff, we provide policing services 24 hours a day, every day. We operate by land, sea and air, manage over 860,000 emergency calls a year and are always actively preventing crime and crashes.
We’re working towards specific goals and targets that highlight our intent to work collaboratively with iwi and communities, other government sectors and business partners to deliver ‘Our Business’ and achieve long-term change.
111 Police Emergency Call Centre Communicator, it starts with you
- Help make New Zealand the safest country in the world
- Answer 111 emergency calls
- The position is based in Wellington CBD
- Training salary $63,526 (consisting of six weeks classroom training, followed by three weeks coaching/mentoring)
- Base salary of $71,398 after training
- Permanent fulltime
- Shift work is required (day/late/night across 24 hours/365 days) with an additional 15% shift allowance and additional leave entitlements for hours worked on weekends, in the evening and overnight
- Multiple positions available for intakes starting early 2025

E tῡ ki te kei o te waka, kia pakia koe e ngā ngaru o te wā.
Stand at the stern of the canoe and feel the spray of the future biting at your face
Mō te tūnga | About the role
Come and join us in a role with true purpose, making a difference for people in their time of need. As the frontline of the frontline, Emergency Communicators are the first point of contact with Police. They answer 111 emergency calls from often distressed callers and help them to feel and be safe.
While this role is rewarding, it is also demanding. Emergency Communicators are required to multitask at pace: questioning callers for critical information, providing advice, following procedures, and operating multiple computer systems. The goal is to accurately record information that enables a safe and effective response.
Every call is different, and incoming calls can involve violence, attempted suicides, sexual assaults, sudden deaths, rescue situations and more - with people’s lives at stake and all within a call time of a few minutes. Emergency Communicators provide a calm and reassuring police presence on the phone.
This role asks a lot, but it also gives a lot. You will be working within a supportive team environment where people care and work together to get the best outcomes. The first six weeks of your employment will be fulltime training. This is where you will learn the aspects of handling emergency calls.
After training, you will work two shifts beginning early morning, followed by two shifts beginning late morning or in the afternoon and then two shifts overnight, before having four days off. This roster covers 24 hours a day, 365 days including public holidays and weekends. In return you will receive an additional 15% compensation for hours worked between 6pm and 6am. The generous leave provisions equate to 35 workdays off per year.
Emergency Communicator is more than a job, it can be the start of a career. In addition to competitive benefits, including perks such as an on-site gym, New Zealand Police are committed to the development and growth of our people. We have pathways to progress within the team and, in time, to other roles within Police.
Follow the link to watch a day in the life of a Police Communicator: A Day in the Life: Police Communicator | New Zealand Police - YouTube
He aha taau e kawe mai | What you’ll bring
Whilst we are looking for skills, knowledge and experience relevant to the role, we also place high importance on your state of mind, the alignment of your values with ours, your ability to contribute to and build high performing teams, and the way that you lead yourself or others.
Great Police Emergency Communicators come from many different backgrounds including customer service roles such as hospitality and retail. What they have in common is:

- A passion and empathy for helping others in need
- Resilience and professionalism in the face of adversity
- Outstanding communication skills, including excellent written and spoken English
- An aptitude to think on your feet and use your questioning and listening skills to make sound decisions under pressure
- The ability to follow highly-structured processes and procedures, while navigating several IT systems at once as well as typing quickly and accurately - all while talking to the caller
- An understanding that our continuous shift work can conflict with family and social events

This role is set at Individual Contributor level, this means your key purpose is “to deliver or enable others to deliver Our Business”.
Mo tātou | About us
New Zealand Police is the lead agency responsible for preventing crime and enhancing community safety. It works in partnership with individuals, communities, businesses, and other public sector agencies towards the vision of making New Zealand the safest country