Page 100 - Automated Fingerprint Identification Systems (AFIS)

AFIS SUMMAR Y—HOW THE SYSTEM WORKS 85

Figure 4.6
Livescan Station

either been reduced or eliminated. As in many other industries, the introduc-
tion of technology has reduced the number of employees who handle routine
jobs. The personnel replaced by technology are retrained for other tasks, are
removed from the workforce, or retire. These technologies also bring new
opportunities for skilled workers such as computer programmers, managers,
and program and policy analysts.
Consider the move of the FBI CJIS Division from Washington, DC to new
facilities in West Virginia. With the introduction of IAFIS, there was no longer
the need for the same staffing level for fingerprint cards as in the past. Also,
many staff were reluctant to leave the Washington, DC area for West Virginia.
Some chose to resign or transfer to another federal agency. Some retired. Some
moved to West Virginia. And in West Virginia new opportunities arose for man-
agers, administrators, and examiners.
Many agencies embrace the new technology as a way of replacing skilled per-
sonnel with the combination of a machine and less skilled personnel. Or put
another way, the skill required to take impressions on a livescan machine, enter
the data, and transmit the record information is far less than the skill required
of a fingerprint classifier. Large cities can save millions of dollars when the