Northern California Security Officers Campaign for Better Wages, Training

Security officers from across Northern California rallied with labor leaders and officials on Thursday in downtown San Francisco, calling for better pay, improved labor standards and more comprehensive training.

Security officers represented by the Service Employees International Union are currently fighting to win a new contract, in hopes of securing benefits such as employer-paid health care, retirement and better working conditions.

“We’re dealing with bad, bad conditions,” said Latasha Reed, a security officer in San Leandro. “We have officers that [have] been slashed on their arm where they have to get 23 stitches. We have security officers that have been knocked down.”

The rally also championed proposed state legislation that aims to review pay and set enhanced training standards for private security officers.

David Huerta, president of the SEIU, said there are over 330,000 private security guards compared to 90,000 badged police officers in California. This disparity often places a strain on security guards to act as first responders, despite receiving less training.

California currently requires licensed guards to receive just 32 hours of training within six months of registration and an additional eight hours of yearly use-of-force and power to arrest training. This primarily happens online, without many opportunities for officers to ask questions.

It’s often insufficient practice for the complex, interpersonal tasks they’re asked to perform every day, said Charles Person, a security officer, union shop steward and member of the bargaining committee for the upcoming contract negotiation.

By comparison, the San Francisco Police Department requires a 34-week-long Basic Academy training and an additional 40 hours of training every two years.

The lack of training can have dire consequences. In June 2023, a security guard shot and killed 24-year-old Banko Brown after police said he shoplifted $14 worth of merchandise. Months after Brown’s death, the state began mandating use-of-force training for security guards. Earlier this year, a security officer shot and killed a man in a Tenderloin parking lot.

“We’re the first line of defense,” Person said. “We’re the ones that respond to emergencies … but we’re being treated as if we’re not important.”

The private security industry predominantly employs Black and brown workers, often for substandard wages, officials said. In California, security guards had an annual mean wage of just $21.61 in 2023. By comparison, police officers have an annual mean wage of $53.74 in 2023.

A Fairfield resident, Person said that with gas and toll prices increasing, every time he commutes to his security work in Richmond, he gets “hit in the pocket.”

“Their wages are well below what it takes to really be able to live and provide for their families, yet they’re protecting multi-billion dollar facilities,” Huerta said ahead of Thursday’s rally. “They’re protecting multi-building dollar companies.”

KQED’s Eliza Peppel contributed to the report.