I'm trying to come up with a formula for what to charge for security services. Most companies want to to pay their employees between $8.50 and $12.00 / hour. On top of that you have insurance costs, vehicle maintenance, etc. I'm tryinand g to figure out what a security company would charge on average for various services such as...
- Apartment complex patrol, say 5 visits per night.
- Standing post - Office building for instance.
- Concert/special event security.
- Hotel/Motel
- Executive protection
Those are some examples. Can anyone in the business suggest an easy way to calculate rates for a variety of services? I'm thinking along the lines of $XX/hour/guard then additional charges for patrol and special equipment needed. I don't want to grab a number out of the air without knowing what the industry averages are. I don't want to overprice, but I don't want to underprice either.
I'm not sure about back in TN, but out here in AZ most pay rates are firmly established or based squarely on what the Dept of Labor determines to be the prevailing rate for a given field, rate and geographic area.
Our rates are DOL rates. Yuma, AZ rates are also DOL determined - and the DOL website is pretty specific and thorough.
I don't have the URL off the top of my head, but if you kick around on the DOL's page you can probably find what you need, based on ZIP codes, cities etc. Guard I and Guard II rates, the works.
Hope this helps too.
Thanks guys....The plan at this point is to hire on a 1099, at least at first. That takes benefits and workers comp out of the mix. The downside is that I may have to require that each guard have their own liability. Addressing what AZSATT mentioned about selling quality and attracting better talent, this could be a good thing. Liability insurance isn't something that the run of the mill idiot will have. Those who do should offer a higher level of service quality.
My lawyer specializes in the security field. He's done a good job putting a client contract together. I also want him to get a subcontractor contract together. Hopefully that will help protect me in the event one of the subs screws up. Liability insurance is under control.
I also agree with selling the certs and experience. The business plan calls for military/police experience, current TN guard license, certified in chemical spray, taser, baton with training in handcuff techniques. Also CRP, AED and first aid certs.
Thanks for those number GF. That helps a lot. If I can get a few more responses like that I can get an idea of what others are charging in different parts of the country. We tried contacting one company. They wanted to come out and to an on-site evaluation, which is a good idea...unless the perspective client is just fishing for comp rates.
DOL's Bureau of Labor Statistics:
Wages by Area and Occupation
You have to be licensed by the state, but you don't have to be an employee of a security company to get licensed or to work. There is nothing stopping me as an individual from working a weekend gig at a local concert on a 1099. If I get a request for something similar and want to hire someone for that gig, I should be able to pay him on a 1099.
I'll check it out, but I know a few guys who just bounce around to different jobs. Sometimes it's just cash. Sometimes the client want to issue a 1099. As long as the guards are state licensed, they are good.
Wow......... bet you did not figure how in depth your answer could be....... Ok, here is the real short Operations Manager of a small security company answer. Figure out what the local Security Officer of that level will work for... not what the WANT to work for, but will work for, and mark it up by 1.5 percent to figure out your billing rate.
Liability insurance... it is not a choice, it is a necessity. Even if your client says you don't need it, you need it!I have been in the security industry for over 15 years... everything from Security Officer to Branch Manager and Director of Security for a Hedge fund, and the one thing that I learned is to never underestimate the stupidity of low pay security officers. You get what you pay for.
Now, you did mentioned insurance costs and vehicle maintenance. You need to include, training pay, vacation pay, holiday pay, uniform cost, unemployment, payroll cost, any medical insurance...... are you going to certify everyone or have them do it themselves?
Worst case is.... foot work. Walk around and find other locations that match the areas you are looking to bid. Then go up to the local security officer and play nice. Do the hey, I run a company, what do you make? I might be able to find something better for you..... or you can ask what they make and say you have a friend who is looking to get into the business.Then do the 1.5 markup and you should be in the ball park. The better the company and guard quality, the higher the mark up... (Most of the time but not all)
I know companies here that hire "thugs", give them a black t-shirt with the word "security" stenciled in white and have them "play security" at special events, concerts, etc, then pay them CASH at the end of the night. Last time I checked, it was around $100 at the end of the night which works out to around $10 per hour. Kind of scary considering that the said "thugs" have no training, very little tact and often cause injury when ejecting people from the events or breaking up fights at the events.
I highly doubt that the people running these companies have any liability insurance. What really amazes me is that they haven't been sued yet, nor have the state regulatory agencies come around to break up their illegal operation.
gf
That's kind of where I'd like to start, but I want to be above board with it. I want qualified people. At the bare minimum, to work legally in the business you have to be state certified, which is nothing more than a weekend class and a pretty thorough background check. That at least says the guy had some training and qualified at the range. You must qualify on any weapon you want to carry on duty.
Can you work as an independent guard in HI or do you have to work through an agency?
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