Starting to think security jobs are the worst jobs in the world

[Miami-Dade Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Miami-Dade]

If somebody dosen't come in to relieve you you can't leave.My roomate was stuck for 36 hours at one time last year.I had to drive 40 miles each way to bring him food and water as he couldn't leave his post.He had to piss in a bottle as the bathroom wasn't working properly and he couldn't leave the post to get to a working one.If your new they want you only for graveyard shift.If you mess up you get black listed and your done for security work anywhere.If you live in hot humid Miami in most cases your in the heat and humidity and bugs eating you up.The pay sucks.You spend time cleaning your uniform unless the company does it for you with a fee of coarse taken out of your weekly pay.

BTW my roomate drives a cab now and is alot happier.

There is a bunch of more things but thats it.

Right now i'm doing security work in a hospital on the graveyard shift.The day guy has a bad habit of not showing up so i'm stuck there in most cases till noon or later.That sucks.

I'm thinking of going to another company but afraid the same thing will happen there.

If you can get a post the closes everyday at a certain time that fits your schedle that seems the way to go.

[N. A. Corbier Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close N. A. Corbier]

If somebody dosen't come in to relieve you you can't leave.My roomate was stuck for 36 hours at one time last year.I had to drive 40 miles each way to bring him food and water as he couldn't leave his post.He had to piss in a bottle as the bathroom wasn't working properly and he couldn't leave the post to get to a working one.If your new they want you only for graveyard shift.If you mess up you get black listed and your done for security work anywhere.If you live in hot humid Miami in most cases your in the heat and humidity and bugs eating you up.The pay sucks.You spend time cleaning your uniform unless the company does it for you with a fee of coarse taken out of your weekly pay.

BTW my roomate drives a cab now and is alot happier.

There is a bunch of more things but thats it.

Right now i'm doing security work in a hospital on the graveyard shift.The day guy has a bad habit of not showing up so i'm stuck there in most cases till noon or later.That sucks.

I'm thinking of going to another company but afraid the same thing will happen there.

If you can get a post the closes everyday at a certain time that fits your schedle that seems the way to go.

Welcome to Florida, where abandoning your post (which is considered walking onto the sidewalk unless your contract refers to leaving the client's property for a specific purpose) is a misdemeanor charge, 5,000 dollar DOACS fine, and suspension or revocation of state license.

If you are kept on duty more than a reasonable time, you should contact DOACS Enforcement immediately. Why, you ask? Because "fraud" according to DOACS includes keeping a non-functional guard on a post, just like having a guard leave their post. After 16 hours of continous duty, DOACS will investigate.

[Miguel Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Miguel]

I'm thinking of going to another company but afraid the same thing will happen there.

The quality of this job depends largely on the site you´re assigned, your co-workers, your direct supervisor and of course, the company. And if it´s a large company with multiple offices, the situation can vary a lot from one to another, since regional managers often have plenty of autonomy to run their office as they see fit.

If just one of these factors fails, your job can turn into a real nightmare. The only real option available for the s/o is to send his complaints up the command chain as high as you can get and if that fails, leave on the better terms possible and try another company.

It sounds you´re in a real messy security company. I don´t think that any complaint can fix the way they run it, it looks they´re beyond any help. So If I were you I´ll just leave in the better possible terms and try another company.

There´s a big rotation of workers in this industry. It´s the same in Spain, probably in most places. Every company has plenty of "desertors" and "recruits" each month. Why stay and take crap when there´s plenty of job offers? It´s a constatly growing industry, there´s no shortage of security jobs in any industrialized country.

Good luck.

[HotelSecurity Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close HotelSecurity]

It's not only security guards. Doctors, Nurses, Telephone Operators etc can not leave their posts unless they are replaced.

[EMTGuard Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close EMTGuard]

Same everywhere. I go out of my way to show up on time or early for everyshift only to be releived late on most days. Sometimes it can't be helped due to a shortage of staff. During the Xmas holidays my supervisor worked his post at the steel mill for 36 hours straight. The same supervisor almost never shows up early and ofen not on time. I was working a assignment which was scheduled from 5:30pm to 5:30am. My releif, the site supervisor who makes the schedules, was late, not releiving me until 6:15am. I noted the extra 45minutes on my time sheet.

[LavianoTS386 Member Find all posts View Profile Close LavianoTS386]

This New Year's eve I had worked 8 hours, and was set to be relieved at midnight, go home and return 8 hours later. My relief didn't show up and I couldn't get a hold of anybody, which means I was set to work a 24hr shift. I was lucky to get a hold of another officer to relieve me at 8am. But If I couldn't have gotten anyone I would have just locked the keys in a closet, called the Security Director to tell her I'm done and have gone home after 8am.

[Miami-Dade Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Miami-Dade]

Welcome to Florida, where abandoning your post (which is considered walking onto the sidewalk unless your contract refers to leaving the client's property for a specific purpose) is a misdemeanor charge, 5,000 dollar DOACS fine, and suspension or revocation of state license.

If you are kept on duty more than a reasonable time, you should contact DOACS Enforcement immediately. Why, you ask? Because "fraud" according to DOACS includes keeping a non-functional guard on a post, just like having a guard leave their post. After 16 hours of continous duty, DOACS will investigate.

I did not know all that.Thank you N.A. Corbier.

Also like MIGUEL says the tunover rate is very very high.Every Sunday i look at the adds and it seems its always the same security companys looking for people.

[Mr. Security Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Mr. Security]

Even though FL is unique in its law about abandoning a post, many security officers hold themselves to the same high standard. I wouldn't leave my post regardless of how long it took to find another officer to relieve me. (Doesn't mean that I wouldn't grab some zzzzzz's after 16 hours though)

[N. A. Corbier Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close N. A. Corbier]

I did not know all that.Thank you N.A. Corbier.

Also like MIGUEL says the tunover rate is very very high.Every Sunday i look at the adds and it seems its always the same security companys looking for people.

They never do. They never stop putting the ads in. And notice they don't say the company name half the time.

[SecureTN Member Find all posts View Profile Close SecureTN]

Correctional Officers have the same problem. High turnover, unreliable reliving Officers, and the environment is much more stressful and hostile then any I worked in Pri. Security. Imagine working 16 hours walking tiers in a Maximum Security Gen. Population Unit! Not to mention mandatory overtime...

[Mr. Security Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Mr. Security]

Correctional Officers have the same problem. High turnover, unreliable reliving Officers, and the environment is much more stressful and hostile then any I worked in Pri. Security. Imagine working 16 hours walking tiers in a Maximum Security Gen. Population Unit! Not to mention mandatory overtime...

No thank you.

[CorpSec Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close CorpSec]

Not all security jobs are bad. I have worked a mix of contract and in-house during my 15 years in the business.

I can't stress this enough- Do whatever it takes to get a good in-house job! Contract security just isn't where it is at.

It was my experience that contract security management spent 80% of their time lying to the clients. What did they do with the other 20% you ask? Well, that was reserved for lying to the staff.

The wages were lacking, beneifts were almost non-existent, the caliber of employee was like that of Burger King or Subway.

Some contracts were better than others. As a rule, the clients that insisted that they get to interview and select the guards from the contract company were better places to work. They seemed to actually take a little interest and ownership in security. The contract companies I am sure hate this since what client that has an officer refusal clause in their contract is going to allow 9/10ths of what they send them in the door?

[Black Caesar Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Black Caesar]

I can't stress this enough- Do whatever it takes to get a good in-house job! Contract security just isn't where it is at.

Amen to that.

One of the things that irked me when I worked contract was the idea of someone else getting paid for me laying MY butt on the line. No worries about that in-house.

One time this apartment complex manager came up to me and said "you better get back outside, I'm paying $20 an hour for you to be here". It was 100 degrees outside, I had been outside for 4 hours (2 helping a Deputy Constable with an eviction on properrty) and was taking a water break. I snapped and said "Guy, I'm making $8 an hour being here, and I'm giving you $8 an hour worth of work, you need to call the company about your other 12........

I probably would have been fired if I hadn't quit that day lol. Good thing I already accepted another job the day before .

The wages were lacking, beneifts were almost non-existent, the caliber of employee was like that of Burger King or Subway.

Pay for dirt, and get dirty lol. I've worked with some guards where getting hired by Burger King would have been a major life accomplishment.. I swear to God, with one company my supervisor had like 3 teeth, he'd make a hillbilly look rich *shudders".

But at the better paying companies, the personell was better too. You get what ya payz 4.

[HotelSecurity Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close HotelSecurity]

I only worked contract for about 3 of my 30+ years in security. The thing I didn't like about it was the idea of having 2 bosses.

[N. A. Corbier Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close N. A. Corbier]

Buddy had that happen to me in the old days, I'd call the manager and tell him he has one hour to get someone on post as I will be leaving then. Of course they say " you will be fired " and I correct them and say " No I will be quiting ", and I have walked. This problem shows poor management, poor supervision, poor policy, and not enough man power for sites.

Some advise: " Most security companies are like VAMPIRES as they will suck the life's blood out of you by over working you, don't let em do it as then you become one of the walking dead ".

And in Florida, you would lose that license that you require to work for abandoning your post. Perhaps you missed that part.