You get what you pay for

[copelandamuffy]

This is posting is for the CEOs, the business men and women.

The old saying penny wise, pound foolish is so true for those

of you to pay "chump change" to a Security Guard who is

working a Sunday morning at 3:00 o'clock. You pay said chump change,

then expect a chump to be Guarding your business


You look good

to your creditors and the stock holders of your business,

because you saved a few dollars by paying the Security Officer

barely above the mininum wage. Yet you expect this Security Officer

to vigilant on tours, looking for chemicals that may have spilled, watching for

burned out motors, checking fence lines, insuring that no one is permitted

on site, unless on the access list. Checking the corporate offices for any

unlocked doors. Going back on patrol and tour because as a

'PROFESSIONAL SECURITY OFFICER" they have that sixth

sense and gut feeling something doesn't feel just right in the office

building or out in the factory, or in the employee parking lot.



You expect this superior service, and you should

receive superior service. However note this: You get what you pay for.

Pay low wages, and you may not always receive A-1 service.

Pay a tad more, and you will get that Good Guard who will

watch and care for your business as though it was their own home.

[Mr. Security]

How true that is.

[Sarin]

Amen!

We've been trying to find a way to get our wages raised to something we can actually live off of out here. As it is, in the less than three months I've worked at this facility, I've been attacked, had bodily fluids AIMED at me when people vomitted, urinated, or even threw them, had a chair thrown at my head the first night, almost got stabbed, and God Bless The Elderly, got kicked in the throat.

Yet I can barely afford my rent, and the people who clean the offices make more than we do, AND get more respect.

And I work in a low risk rural hospital...is there something wrong with this picture?

[Bill Warnock]

Amen!

We've been trying to find a way to get our wages raised to something we can actually live off of out here. As it is, in the less than three months I've worked at this facility, I've been attacked, had bodily fluids AIMED at me when people vomitted, urinated, or even threw them, had a chair thrown at my head the first night, almost got stabbed, and God Bless The Elderly, got kicked in the throat.

Yet I can barely afford my rent, and the people who clean the offices make more than we do, AND get more respect.

And I work in a low risk rural hospital...is there something wrong with this picture?

Sarin, there is no such thing as a low risk rural hospital there are only rural soft target hospitals.
The hospital accreditation association is trying to address that problem as I explained in my PMs to you. Local and hospital politics sometimes stand in the way.
Enjoy the day,
Bill

[Arff312]

I saw the perfect example of why we get paid so low yesterday. About 6 of my officers were standing in the parking lot chatting about to go our various ways. All in uniform and fully armed. In pulls a car and out gets a man who is holding a paper walks up to us. He speaks almost no English but is able to get the idea to us that he needs directions. I look at the paper he was getting directions to a site for another company. This other company advertises themselves as elite but when I worked for them there were numerous people who couldn’t speak English, had no gear, one guy I asked him what kind of gun he had he said I don’t know the company gave it to me. No extra mags etc... And this site that I worked for them was in south Sacramento about 1/2 a mile from some sites that my new company ahs and only puts experienced officers and always fully armed at. Go figure that why we can’t get paid more due to cut rate shady practices from other companies. I hate these warm body companies as all they do is drag security through the mud.

[BadBoynMD]

I saw the perfect example of why we get paid so low yesterday. About 6 of my officers were standing in the parking lot chatting about to go our various ways. All in uniform and fully armed. In pulls a car and out gets a man who is holding a paper walks up to us. He speaks almost no English but is able to get the idea to us that he needs directions. I look at the paper he was getting directions to a site for another company. This other company advertises themselves as elite but when I worked for them there were numerous people who couldn’t speak English, had no gear, one guy I asked him what kind of gun he had he said I don’t know the company gave it to me. No extra mags etc... And this site that I worked for them was in south Sacramento about 1/2 a mile from some sites that my new company ahs and only puts experienced officers and always fully armed at. Go figure that why we can’t get paid more due to cut rate shady practices from other companies. I hate these warm body companies as all they do is drag security through the mud.

That's classic... I, can remember when while working for this company, I was assigned to a pretty bad area. It was considered the drug/crime hot spot. Well, the supervisor that worked in another area quit, so what do they do. RE-ASSIGN me. This area was a moderate risk area. Instead, they sent a guy that never worked security before. He used to work for the postal service. I'm like how in the H-E-double hockey sticks are you going to send a rookie with NO experience to the "ghetto" and send me to "mayberry". He use to get back to the office pissed off, and i'd go "what's wrong?", and he would reply "do you have problems with the cops out there?". I'm like "no, not at all, why?". He said "I am tired of getting doors slammed in my face, being told to go away, etc", I'm like "oh?, sorry never had that problem" It just goes to show as long as you have a heartbeat and can talk some managers will place you anywhere to "cover" a site.

[GCMC Security]

Amen!

We've been trying to find a way to get our wages raised to something we can actually live off of out here. As it is, in the less than three months I've worked at this facility, I've been attacked, had bodily fluids AIMED at me when people vomitted, urinated, or even threw them, had a chair thrown at my head the first night, almost got stabbed, and God Bless The Elderly, got kicked in the throat.

Yet I can barely afford my rent, and the people who clean the offices make more than we do, AND get more respect.

And I work in a low risk rural hospital...is there something wrong with this picture?

Sounds like a friday night!

[Rooney]

I have noticed through my experience in business that what all of you have posted is so true. The problem with low wages in any line of work stems from the following:

1. Market. What will the market bear for the service.
2. Employees. What will the employee take the position for.
3. Saturation. Is the particular field saturated with people that will do it for a lower wage.
4. Quality. Average experience level versus pay for that experience.
5. Competition. Will another company do the service for less.

When you have a service that is inundated with inexperienced people working for lower wages the experienced people's wages will be lower in comparison to a field that is not saturated with inexperienced personnel.

When I was a guard just out of the military I seen first hand how the wages were sooooo low in this area for guards. Companies were hiring people off the street. After a 4 hour class on what to do, your out on patrol on your own. Needless to say there was alot of turnaround of employees. No background checks, drug tests, etc. just a warm body.

I know there are alot of reputable companies that are not at all like the one I "temporarily" worked for. Companies like that are cause for concern and also a reason that wages are kept to a minimum for excellent people that deserve so much more.

[ValleyOne]

I am not sure if a union is the answer, but this article-granted a few years old-is a good start. These guys got together and got the attention of The City of Seattle, who in turn voted to create a resolution mandating higher training....

They're the eyes and ears protecting Seattle's downtown high-rises, but some say the security officers who guard the buildings that make up the city's skyline are underpaid and undertrained.

Yesterday, their efforts to organize as a union and, they say, improve their ability to protect these towering buildings got a boost from the City Council, which adopted a resolution that calls for "high-quality training" and a host of labor benefits, including wages people can live on, health insurance and a uniform contract adopted citywide.

Franklin Bullock, a former security officer who says he was fired in December for his efforts to join a union, called yesterday's unanimous council vote a victory.

Seattle council backs security guards' push for better training, benefits

[Mr. Security]

Regulation

These companies are not going to police themselves. They must be regulated out of business.

[Investigation]

I am not sure if a union is the answer, but this article-granted a few years old-is a good start. These guys got together and got the attention of The City of Seattle, who in turn voted to create a resolution mandating higher training....



Seattle council backs security guards' push for better training, benefits

The Seattle City Council has no legal scope over private security. They used to license Security Guards, Private Detectives, and Merchant Patrol persons years ago. The State now regulates these individuals.

[N. A. Corbier]

These companies are not going to police themselves. They must be regulated out of business.

The regulators aren't going to do that. Almost all regulators belong to an association started by the guy who created Chapter 493 in Florida. This body lobbies and offers guidance to any state that looks to license security guards and PIs. And what their model is... is Florida and California.

Require insurance before a license. Limit authority of security personnel, ensuring that any official authority is removed so not to confuse the populace. Require fees from individual guards, training in "observe and report," and fees from companies.

[Mr. Security]

The regulators aren't going to do that. Almost all regulators belong to an association started by the guy who created Chapter 493 in Florida. This body lobbies and offers guidance to any state that looks to license security guards and PIs. And what their model is... is Florida and California.

Require insurance before a license. Limit authority of security personnel, ensuring that any official authority is removed so not to confuse the populace. Require fees from individual guards, training in "observe and report," and fees from companies.

Short term, you may be correct. However, just as standards for police officers (POST, etc.) are now in place, so it will be with security. All it will take is a major terrorist attack to expose the woeful inadequacies of the security industry. People will demand that security officers be equipped and trained to deal with the real world.

[N. A. Corbier]

Short term, you may be correct. However, just as standards for police officers (POST, etc.) are now in place, so it will be with security. All it will take is a major terrorist attack to expose the woeful inadequacies of the security industry. People will demand that security officers be equipped and trained to deal with the real world.

Trained and equipped, how? Since the established role of private security in counter-terrorism operations (as illustrated by California BSIS) is to observe suspicious activity ("islamic looking people") and report the activity to law enforcement... There's no additional training required.

Law Enforcement believes itself the first responder in any incident involving terrorism. Not EMS, not the Fire Department, and certainly not a civilian. The "counter-terrorism" and "terrorism awareness" training I have seen so far, mandated by state licensing boards, is simply: DO YOUR JOB, OBSERVE UNUSUAL EVENTS AND REPORT THEM TO YOUR BOSS.

This is how they want it, quite frankly.

[Mr. Security]

Trained and equipped, how? Since the established role of private security in counter-terrorism operations (as illustrated by California BSIS) is to observe suspicious activity ("islamic looking people") and report the activity to law enforcement... There's no additional training required.

Law Enforcement believes itself the first responder in any incident involving terrorism. Not EMS, not the Fire Department, and certainly not a civilian. The "counter-terrorism" and "terrorism awareness" training I have seen so far, mandated by state licensing boards, is simply: DO YOUR JOB, OBSERVE UNUSUAL EVENTS AND REPORT THEM TO YOUR BOSS.

This is how they want it, quite frankly.

Roles change based on needs. LE is not capable of providing adequate services when a major disaster occurs. Departments are understaffed in many areas to the point were mutual aid agreements are put into place as a patch for the hole in the safety net.

Once the business sector experiences substantial financial and HR losses because public resources are overwhelmed, they will quickly wise up. Too bad they can't figure that out before and be proactive.