CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Employees of the Kanawha County Metro 911 center are getting an across-the-board pay raise.

The 911 center's board of directors voted Thursday to give each of the facility's 73 employees a $1,000 raise, said interim 911 Director Johnny Rutherford.

Rutherford said the raises are in addition to a $1,000 raise the Kanawha County Commission approved for all county employees last month.

About 50 of those getting the raises are 911 dispatchers. Starting salaries for a dispatcher are about $26,000 a year.

Rutherford said the raises are deserved. "It's a very stressful situation, and they do a good job," he said.