Changing my job.

[EMTGuard]

Well, I've been looking to change jobs for sometime but wanted to make sure that I didn't rush into anything.
Today I signed the final forms and got my initial uniform issue for my new job. Tommorrrow I will put in my 2 week notice at my security/EMT job at the plant.
On December 9 I will go in for my first day at my new job, Emergency Communications Officer for East Baton Rouge Parish Emergency Medical Services.
I will be working in the City-Parish 911 Center dispatching for EMS. I will be making more money, driving half the distance I do now and get necessary training I need for my EMT recertification.
When I give my notice I will let my supervisor that I'm willing to continue with the Security company as a Fill-in Officer who can be called in when extra personel are needed based on my availability from my EMS job.
To learn more about EBR EMS check out this-
http://www.merginet.com/index.cfm?pg...&fn=batonrouge .
The EBR EMS website is -
http://brgov.com/dept/ems/default.asp .

Wish me luck.

Steve

[Lawson]

Well, I've been looking to change jobs for sometime but wanted to make sure that I didn't rush into anything.
Today I signed the final forms and got my initial uniform issue for my new job. Tommorrrow I will put in my 2 week notice at my security/EMT job at the plant.
On December 9 I will go in for my first day at my new job, Emergency Communications Officer for East Baton Rouge Parish Emergency Medical Services.
I will be working in the City-Parish 911 Center dispatching for EMS. I will be making more money, driving half the distance I do now and get necessary training I need for my EMT recertification.
When I give my notice I will let my supervisor that I'm willing to continue with the Security company as a Fill-in Officer who can be called in when extra personel are needed based on my availability from my EMS job.
To learn more about EBR EMS check out this-
http://www.merginet.com/index.cfm?pg...&fn=batonrouge .
The EBR EMS website is -
http://brgov.com/dept/ems/default.asp .

Wish me luck.

Steve

Well, congratulations on the new position. I recently had a friend go into Telecommunications and she tells me it is hard as hell, so I definately wish you luck.

I know what its like to leave a job you've been at for a while for more pay and less driving, which is exactly why I left Wackenhut. a 100 mile drive everyday turned into a 10 mile drive and a raise of about 4 bucks an hour at times.

So anyway, congrats on the new job, hope everything works out for you.

[Mr. Security]

Wish you well. I'm jealous though.

[HotelSecurity]

Good luck.

Do they use the Clauson system?

[EMTGuard]

Good luck.

Do they use the Clauson system?

When I find out I'll let you know.

[EMTGuard]

Well, I went in to work yesterday evening just befofe 6pm and told my supervisor before we even started shift change that I was putting in my notice. He asked me to type someting up for him since, apparently, a verbal notice isn't good enough any more. We had a guard quit a month ago and he hasn't been replaced yet. The company asked my supervisor this week if the guy has officially quit. My superviser replied that "Yes, he gave his 2 week notice then he stopped coming after the date he gave." The company apparently still has him listed as an employee. They wanted something in writing from the employee. This is the first time in more than 2 years with this company I've heard of them wanting something on paper from an employee quiting. Usually the supervisor calls the local branch office and tells the contract manager that the person quit, or has given notice and is quiting on a certain date, and we need a replacement. In fact the company has sent two people out to train to be his replacement but both quit after just a couple days training. Meanwhile they are having other officers com in and work overtime to cover the shift for they guy who quit last month. The guard scheduled for tonight is in his mid 70's, has major health problems and was admitted to the hospital last night and is still there this moring. Nobody's sure if he'll be out in time to come to work tonight. I hope he shows or they get someone else or I'm going to end up working alone tonight.
I'm not sure how much sucess they will have finding an EMT certified SO to replace me. Back in the beginning of the year they had a problem with a EMT on another shift and were looking for a replacement for her. They contacted local fire departments looking for EMTs willing to work for the guard service but couldn't find any takers. The problem child EMT/SO is still working for us.
Oh well, I've given my verbal and written notice a good 2 and a half weeks in advance. It's up to them to find someone now.

[Mall Director]

It has become a new HR issue with written notices. Employees (former) are winning comp cases because the employer failed to attempt to gain a written notification, or because the employer on alot of occassions claims the employee that was fired had given notice, and then failed to show.

Then there is the old scheduling trap that employers play.. Leaving an employee they wish to get rid of, off the schedule for two weeks, then claiming the employee never called/ never showed after giving a two week notice.

I really love the ones that put in their notice, and then never come back. They feel since they gave their notice, it exempts them from having to fulfil a work requirement. At that point, its automatic termination, with a no rehire attachment.

[Eric]

Offering to help out on a fill in basis speaks volumes of your level of professionalism and not wanting to burn bridges. Good luck in the new role.

[HotelSecurity]

I have an Officer that is now in limbo. He verbally quit, 3 days after suffering a minor injury & 2 days after not showing up for scheduled shifts or even calling in sick. He now denies he quit, says he was fired! In general the owner of my hotels is cheap except for one thing, he likes to pay lawyers.

[EMTGuard]

Offering to help out on a fill in basis speaks volumes of your level of professionalism and not wanting to burn bridges.

Well, I really don't have anything against the guard job. Heck, it's really laid out. We aren't a chemical plant so security is minimal and at night there's little to do but make a round every couple of hours. I spend most nights hanging out in the guard shack answering phones, signing paperwork generated by the scalehouse regarding trucks picking up steel at our plant and the rest of the time I'm reading or watching shows on my laptop. The past 4 nights I've worked my work partner and I spent most of the time watching episodes of Doctor Who on my laptop computer. A couple of weeks ago we worked through the first season of the HBO series "Rome". Sure there are things that we don't like but over all it's a gret gig.
The problem is the pay hasn't gone up in 3years but everything else has. I'm driving 100mile round trip and gas prices are going up all the time. My cost of living, from light bill to home insurance, has increased as well. After months of begging for a pay raise for our officers our account mamager finally told our supervisor that we can forget any raise. It's not happening.
Add to that the problems we've had recently with shortage of guards and the client isn't happy with our companies performance. We needed extra manpower during some recent construction at the plant but the security company was not able to get suffecent numbers of temporary officers and the client was not happy when we had to juggle the schedule of our regular guard staff to work lots of overtime to cover those posts.
Everyone here knows that when there are problems with a contract account you can be unemployeed as fast as your company looses the account.
I needed something with better pay, more benefits, is closer to where I live and will be there tommorrow. That is why I accepted the job as a 911/EMS dispatcher for Baton Rouge. I simply couldn't afford to keep working full time for the guard service. Heck, my supervisor is looking for another job too. He told me, when I gave my notice, that he's in the same boat and is even worse off. He's applying for bankruptcy this week.
If the guard service still wants to keep me on the books to come in once or twice a month to cover for someone who is taking a shift off, then that's just more money in my pocket. I just can't do it full time there anymore when I can get more money and better bennies somewhere else.

[HotelSecurity]

Again, I don't work contract & I'm not unionized but most contract people in Montreal are unioized & they are all members of the same union. If one security agency looses a contract the new one HAS to keep the same staff.

[Jackhole]

Good luck, I hope you enjoy being a dispatcher more than I did!

[EMTjon]

Congrats on EBR EMS... I worked with some of their folks when I was down in Baton Rouge for Hurricane relief... good people.

Good luck.

[EMTGuard]

About to head into work for my last 12 hour shift as a fulltime Security Officer/EMT. When I get off tommorrow morning I will be officially on Part-time/as available. I start Saturday evening at East Baton Rouge 911. Things are really short handed at the guard shack. We already have one SO, my former partner, who quit over a month ago and they just go a replacement for him last week. Now we have 2 other officers out for medical problems. One just had surgery and will be out 8 weeks and the other, well he's just so old that the doctors may not let him come back to work. So we have one SO covering dayshifts, 7 days a week, and another (the new guy) working nights 7 nights a week. We will have one SO/EMT working nights, 7 nights a week when I leave, and my Site supervisor/SO/EMT who will work days but will have some releif from the one in-house SO/EMT we work with.
I'll probably be in sometime around Xmas to fill in and give someone a day or night off. Also, the plant is shutting down for a couple of weeks in January for turnaround and they will need extra help during that time so I'll more than likly pick up a few shifts then too.
Well, gotta go. Come on 6 am.

[EMTGuard]

Well, that was a short career. I washed out in about 2 weeks at 911 dispatch. I was good up until about shift 5 then started falling behind in the training. By shift 10 I was not only not progressing but backsliding. So Wednesday moring we had the "Quit or Be Fired" meeting and I cut my losses.
Was I disappointed? Sure. You bet. I went in knowing the job was gonna be tough and only about 1 in 5 make it through their 6 month training period. But the increase in pay and benefits was worth the attempt.
Let me tell you. If you THINK you can multitask in a high speed, high stress job try dispatching in a major city. It's a whole different world.
Luckily the crappy little guard service I had been working for was still looking for a replacement more than a month after I gave them my notice. In fact, while I was working at my 911 job my supervisor from the guard site was calling and leaving voice mails asking if I could come in to cover a couple of shifts.
So when I knew I was turing in my 911 badge I made a phone call and talked to my guard supervisor. I left the 911 center Wednesday morning at 9 am and by 5:45pm that evening was back, working fulltime in my old guard shack.
Little lesson here folks. Never burn your bridges if you can help it.