In House or Contract Security, That is the Question
In House or Contract Security- That is the Question
Mike the right decision with your security company
Do the terms FLSA, ACA, HIPPA, E-Verify or I-9 scare you? They should if you have in-house security, maintenance or housekeeping staff. These terms are just some of the federally mandated employment laws that HOA’s, condo boards and property managers must contend with. If you are not fully compliant with any of these it can cost you and your organization hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines, penalties and yes, even back wages.
What can you do to eliminate these HR compliance headaches and ensure the safety and security of your business, building or property in the real world?
Outsourcing may provide the solutions you’re looking for.
Outsourcing can provide a viable and affordable solution for many businesses, condominiums, planned communities, office and professional complexes. The security provider you choose will take on the costs
and hassles of hiring, scheduling, HR administration, insurance, liability, training and outfitting employees.
If you’re looking for trained security officers, you’ll find that hiring your own staff can be extremely expensive. The last thing you want when it comes to security is less-than-qualified workers. A reputable security provider will have the money and resources to properly recruit and hire highly qualified officers. In other words, outsourcing can give you access to security resources of a caliber unavailable to you on your own, and save you money in the process.
Condo associations and HOA’s may not have the resources to properly vet security experts in their employ. The officers who fill these crucial positions, must be stable, reliable, trustworthy, and well-trained. A failure on any level could spell disaster.
By outsourcing or on-boarding your current in house staff to a firm that makes security their business, you can rest easier knowing that anyone they send your way has been properly vetted, trained, and held to the highest standards. After all, the security provider that hired them has a reputation to uphold, just as you do.
HR Costs/Bill Rate
According to the US Department of Labor legally required benefits such as social security, workers compensation insurance, unemployment and Medicare costs can add an additional 14.5% to your payroll costs.
If you provide other benefits such as health & life insurance, 401K contributions, and/or paid leave time those costs can add an additional 24% to your payroll and operating expenses.
What does this mean to you?
Let’s say your annual in-house security payroll is $75,000 per year. Factoring in the mandated benefits and your actual payroll costs leap to $85,875, that’s over a $10,000 increase. If you offer benefits your actual costs skyrocket to over $105,000. That’s $35,000 additional dollars you’re spending on payroll without any additional personnel or job tasks being performed.
Insurance Savings
You more than likely currently have general liability insurance coverage that protects you and any governing board from losses resulting in accidents or injuries that occur on the property. Risk is the single biggest factor in determining how much coverage costs. No one anticipates accidents or mistakes. The rising cost of general liability insurance is another area of concern for managers, board members and residents.
If you’ve had accidents or faced lawsuits in the past then expect to pay more.
A reputable security contractor will carry sufficient liability and workers compensation insurance which will provide you indemnification from losses and employee injuries and illness, thereby reducing your overall insurance costs and risk factors.
Better Training, Oversight and Supervision
As a board member or property manager how much time out of your day do you have to check on and provide oversight to your security personnel? Do you even know what to look for or what questions to
ask?
Any reputable and reliable third-party security provider should provide comprehensive supervisory and managerial oversight to its guards including random and periodic unannounced inspections of the site and the personnel assigned there.
Outside of showing your in-house team where to put packages, which contractors are allowed access and what the pool hours are, what training has your team received. Does your team have the expertise or resources to provide that training? A professional security company does.
At a minimum any professional security officer should be trained in emergency first aid, CPR and fire suppression.
“But we love our in-house staff and don’t want to lose them!” is something we hear very often when talking to property managers, condo board members and HOA presidents about on-boarding in-house staff. In a properly structured transition you retain your current staff. Pay rates and benefits remain unchanged as does seniority ranking.
As your operation grows, so too will your needs where support is concerned. You may acquire additional facilities that require additional physical security. Either way, flexible security solutions that easily adapt to the changing needs of your business or property are a must.
All of these factors are where outsourcing can really ease the transition process as your needs change, while you grow and expand. You have plenty on your plate already without having to worry about increasing on-site security teams. A reputable and reliable third-party service provider can handle these concerns for you.
Choosing the Right Provider
The south Florida contract security market is one of the most competitive in the nation. There are currently over 1,200 licensed security agencies in Broward and Miami-Dade counties alone.
These agencies range from huge national companies to one or two man agencies working out of someone’s home garage or spare bedroom. So choosing the right security provider is crucial.
When evaluating security firms you need to ask the following questions.
- Does the agency provide general liability insurance and do they indemnify you in the event of a
loss from any incident or accident caused by any negligent, grossly negligent, willful act or
omission or intentional act, of their guard? -
Are their guards actual employees of the company or are they paying them as sub-contractors?
Some less than reputable security providers will do this to avoid the high costs of workers
compensation insurance, payroll taxes and social security contributions. -
How responsive is their management team to problems, issues or concerns of yours?
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Do they utilize the latest technology to provide you officer accountability and transparency?
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Do they have an actual brick and mortar corporate presence or footprint?
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Do their supervisors or manager conduct periodic unannounced inspections of the sites and staff?
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What training have your guards had? First Aide, CPR, Fire Suppression?
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Do they conduct random drug tests of their employees?
Way back in the fifteenth century English satirist Gabriel Bell recognized that, “You get what you pay for;” which Webster defines as meaning “a thing that can be bought for a very low price probably isn’t very good”, and that’s especially true when evaluating security companies.
Any security provider that quotes you a bargain basement bill rate in the low teens ($14 per hour or less) is probably NOT going to provide suitable answers to these questions nor will they provide you the level
of service and support you need or want. They’re going to be using sub-contractors or paying their employees minimum wage to stay profitable. What caliber of officer are they delivering at that pay rate?
The Trident Ground Protection Difference
Dependability, discipline and dedication to the client are the hallmarks of being a member of the Trident Ground Protection team.
The principles of Trident Ground Protection have over 80 years of military, law enforcement, private security and special ops experience in both field, command and executive level positions. We pride ourselves in helping our clients – large or small. We have the expertise, knowledge and ability to secure and protect your property, business or event. Trident Ground Protection was established with one goal in mind, to provide our clients with more than simply a security guard. Our team consists exclusively of true security professionals.
Trident Ground Protection actively recruits and hires our military veterans and former or retired law enforcement personnel. By hiring this caliber of employee, we provide our clients with a more disciplined, dedicated and focused security officer.
Our management and field staff are solely dedicated to providing you a level of service, awareness and discipline far above that of any other security provider. A member of our corporate management team is available to you 24/7 by way of either our corporate headquarters in located Oakland Park or after hours from our Global Security Operations Center located in downtown Fort Lauderdale.
When you contract your security functions with Trident Ground Protection we assume the liability for any incident or accident caused by any negligent, grossly negligent, willful act or omission or intentional act, of one of our team members up to one million dollars per occurrence. Our officers are employees of our company, not sub-contractors and are fully covered under our workers compensation insurance coverage.
As part of our commitment to provide the highest level of professional security services, every new client receives a vulnerability analysis, comprehensive threat assessment and crime statistics report for their site, building or property. We then use the results as the basis for designing a comprehensive and cost effective security program and post orders specific to your needs and desires.
We work with and build relationships with your local law enforcement agency to maximize leveraged law enforcement services g=for your property. Technology within the security industry has greatly advanced from the days of the old Detex Watch Clock Stations. © Trident Ground Protection deploys the latest and most advanced web-based applications for officer accountability and activity. As part of our commitment to transparency the systems allows you the client and TGP management to see in real time an officer’s location and review their current and past activity.
The system can also be configured to send instant e-mail alerts regarding incidents occurring at your property.
Personnel management has also accomplished via a web-based portal which only allows an officer to “clock in” once he or she is on site. It also can be set up to provide you, the client with e-mail notifications about late employees or personnel and scheduling changes. So whether your looking to develop a comprehensive security program, out-source your in-house security program or just in the market for professional and dedicated security services, you can be assured that Trident Ground Protection is the best solution.
We’re committed to providing you with top notch local support and knowledge. We approach every client with a focus on support, integrity, advocacy, and understanding.
Find out more about Trident Ground Protection
Tags: Condo and HOA Common Area Issues, Management News, Member Highlights, Members Articles, Security and Safety Articles
If you association’s CC&Rs and bylaws have not been reviewed for five years, or more, it is time to request a legal review to ensure your documents comply with current statutes and laws. Older documents may not address modern communication options like emailing, texting and owners’ portal. Also, there have been important changes that will improve an association’s ability to collect delinquent assessments that can be negatively impacted by outdated governing documents. If your documents have not been updated, then due to the safe harbor law and joint and several liability, back owed association dues may not roll over if the house is sold. The documents can be re-written to include language that mentions if the house has past due assessments when sold, then the new owners can be held liable for these payments.
Revitalization of Expired Homeowners Association Declarations and Covenants
Violation notices are not personal or targeted. They are simply the means by which the association lets owners know about rule violations and gives them a chance to correct a problem. Violation notices can be generated by a manager’s observations, board observations and even from observations by fellow owners. While you may feel as though you are the only one to receive a violation notice, this is generally not the case. The truth is that most of the violation notices can be easily remedied by simply fixing the problem or complying with the rule and letting management know the problem has been resolved.
