Allied Barton Security Wrongful suspension pending termination lead to Termination Naperville , Illinois
I worked at the allied barton office in the naperville are for 6 plus years. I was assigned the position at BP research site in the naperville area. They basically terminated me for supposed violation of standard procedures. I worked there for 5 1/2 years showed up everyday no matter snow, rain or blizzard. I did a ridiculous amount of overtime at the site. Always volunteering to stay over and came in on my days off to work overtime because of the large amount of call off's. I came in on my day off which was on a Friday because of some guard who had to have emergency surgery. Supposedly there was an alarm at BP Chicago, (remmeber I was working at the gatehouse in Naperville and this is 50 miles away from Chicago, which I have many duties and have to monitor C-cure (door alarms), Fireworks system, signing in visitor's and signing out visitor's, vehicle inspections, receiving phone calls), it was a couple of door alarms meaning the door was held open too long. I called BP Chicago security
officer to inform them they had a couple of alarms and they should check on this. She said she would check on the alarms. I worked the rest of my shift normally without any issue. Then on Monday BP Chicago called to inform me they had a thief running around the building. Apparently he piggy backed on an employee using there ID badge. The building security which is Whelan, didn't catch this and this guy was running around. They finally did catch him. On Tuesday I was called on the phone by the account manager at home asking why I didn't call on some alarms on Friday, why it took so long. We get hundreds of door alarms and many of them the same ones going off all the time. I had no idea what he was talking about since this is 3 days after the incident.
Well I was called by the supervisor to report to see the account manager before to report to my post. I met with the account manager, operations and shift supervisor. They basically told me that I did not answer the two alarms in a timely fashion. We have hundreds of door alarms that occur at the naperville, cantera 2 and BP chicago site daily. All the doors we have responded too were already secured/cleaning crew held door open/ or door held open so all traffic can come in for visitors. He basically blamed me for it. The security supervisor's laptop was stolen. It was UNSECURED. The thief just hit a little green on the door which had no card reader, and took the laptop. It is our job and policy when a laptop is unsecured we are suppose to confiscate it. The security supervisor did not secure his own laptop. There was also no card reader to use to get to the security desk. The security officer for BP didn't even realize the laptop was missing on her whole entire shift which sits right next to her. All this was discovered on Monday. Lets look at the total picture, whelan security failed and let this dude run around the building, BP security officer (only one) in charge of our two floors was patrolling and didn't see the thief, check doors or realize the laptop was missing. So they decidely blamed me at Northgate who is 50 miles away from Chicago BP about the missing laptop and the thief sneaking in while they should be blaming the BP security officer at Chicago and whelan security who is in chatge of building security. There are three different stations to monitor door activity. The security office were the supervisor was sitting, cantera 2 which is an office building with an officer. And me at northgate. So there were supposedly two other eyes to catch these door alarms along with me. Along with monitoring door alarms I am watching thousands of people leaving the site between the hours of 1600-1800, along with many of the other duties. They basically told me I was suspended removed from the site and pending termination. Which basically means I am fired.
Its a real shame to treat someone like this who even shows up on his day off to help you out. Last year a engineering vehicle was stolen off the naperville BP site. A thief hoped over the fence to avoid the Illinois State police and got in one of the engineer vehicles and went through northgate. The officer opened the Northgate thinking the guy in the van is an engineer and forgot his badge. That right there is a violation and the guard should have been reprimended. But he still had his job after the incident. The van was recovered in Chicago.
Another incident occurred when they were tearing down the 500 building and had a ton of copper wire that was located by the west gate. The copper wire was stolen because the guard never locked the west gate on Friday at 9pm. Was the guard ever fired? No he wasn't.
Guards get a way with alot of crap at BP Naperville. Your suppose to be at your post when your shift starts or you get a half strike. There were guards who were late god knows how many times they must be on strike 12 but apparently they turn the cheek on them. I had no strikes to my name at all when I was employed there.
The girl who worked for the account manager that was working at BP Chicago worked with him at harah's casino in Joliet. He protects her even from allt he screw up's that she has done. As far as I was told nothing happened to her. This girl who was brought over to my site at naperville was dead end on seniority. Two buildings closed on my site and they had to lay off some officers. She was allowed to stay but other officers with more seniority were reassigned back to the office.
There is this one guard who gets really friendly witht he ladies and even has been accused of sexual harassment, but nothing has ever happened to him.
I really miss the first account manager who I worked for before the account manager Cornell Johnson who uses intimidation, fear, bully, god like complex, phoney account manager that took over. The first account manager would shake your hand ask if you if everything is running on your shift okay?
But day turned to night when this dude took over. I too have a BA in criminal justice and would love to get my feet into law enforcement instead of working for this crappy security company who doesn't give a s**t about you no matter what kind of effort you put in. I did alot of the fire proofing, door lock survey's and emergency phone checks at my site compared to other people on my shift. I always stepped up and was always there. Still can't believe they made me the scape goat of the situation or better yet RAILED me.
Sorry for the spelling and grammer but I just typed this right out of my head and didn't have time for proof reading.
3 Updates & Rebuttals
alliyah
Texas,USA
ALLIED BARTON IS A RIP OFF/ CUSTOMERS BE WARNED
#4REBUTTAL Individual responds
Wed, January 20, 2016
I totally agree that Allied Barton is a rip off. Their training is a joke first of all. The Recruiters only send all new personal to high turn over Sites. I had a Site at Digital Realty in Houston Texas that had many problems. First there was a huge lack of training for the Security. There were Security Personnel that did not even know how to operate computers. There were numerous amounts of Cameras and intercom issues that were out for weeks at a time. There were doors left unsecured at the Customer buildings that were left open, because new Security did not know how to get in contact with the Customer past hours. The Security guards were only given 15 minute lunch on 12 hour shifts. When the Site Supervisor Jim Albiston would find out that the Security Guards had taken more than 15 minute lunchs a memo would go out threatening termination.
If you had Medical issues you would be threatened to lose your job if you were not able to perform your job because of medical concerns. There are at least 3 Employees still at the site that have told me that they are Diabetes. In order for them to go to the doctor and not be fired, they would have to use their vacation time to do so. One of the Security Guards that is a Diabetic said that she had to be able to take a lunch to keep her sugar level down, but is often denied lunch to cover for other employees. On the weekends there is absolutely no Supervisor or Shift Leader there in case of emergency situations, leaving new personnel to figure out what to do in case of an emergency.
When told that we would at least need an available Supervisor on shift for the weekend, they would say that everything you need to know is available to read in a binder in case of emergency. There have been plenty of Security Officer (Myself included) that have worked overtime of 16 hours or more in a day. There have been Security Officers that have covered shifts of at least 20 hours in one day, and then return to do another 10 hours shift the next day.
When I first arrived at the Site, there were two female Security Guards that were getting ready to quit. One of the female Security guards informed me that she was filing a Discrimination Suit against Allied Barton and the Site Supervisor Jim Albiston. She filed the complaint through the company first to see if they would make changes, but only went and informed jim Albiston of the situation and she was fired. many Supervisors have left the Site under Jim (James) Albiston because of over work or discrimination. Some have been injured physically, threated, intimidated, insulted,and the list increases. When you try to file a Discrimination of EEOC complaint you will receive a call from Catherine with the District HR office (Mr. Albiston personal friend) that will let you know that you are fired for one infraction. Just like the previous post, they do not care about there Employees. If you do not play by their rules, you are bascially fired. If you want to resign, you are fired. If you want to be reassigned, you are fired. If you are a minute or 2 minutes late you are written up. After 3 write ups you are fired, even though the Site Supervisor works from 9 (sometimes 10) to 4. This also includes an hour lunch break with the Engineers off post. Mr. Albiston has been verbally abusive with many Customers to include Cogent employees, Fibertown employees and customers, and many others. He had always been reprimanded but never fired.
New Employees are forced to sign a Disclosure statement with no expiration date on it in fear that you would file a lawsuit. I have many documentations stating that the Site Supervisor is a bully and have filed complaints on him personally, but he is still there. If you have issues with your paycheck you are told to talk to your Site Supervisor, and then he says call the main office. When you call the main office, they say that there is no Payroll department. I have had $230 in deductions for half of a year even carrying dependants. I was told it was not unusual. Even though you are a Veteran and you can get your license discounted, they still charge the same fee for a license, and charge for fingerprinting. We use biometrics at the Site, and there have been issues where the doors were unsecured for months at a time. You would constantly report the same issues, but the work order or Report would be overlooked.
The Security Personnel are put on Computers with no proper training and never asked if they knew how to properly operate a computer. I have told the Site Supervisor if he were Audited on everything, he would be in big trouble. We do not get Field Supervisors at our Site, everything is do internally. This is so no issues would be reported. There are many Security Officers and Customers at the Site that want to file a Civil Action against Allied Barton/ Digital Realty, but are afraid that they would be fired. So most Security Officer do not complain, but of course they only stay about a year. The turn over rate is very high. The longest I have seen any Employee stay at this site is one year, and they made it to Supervisor. However, they have a file so thick, they would be afraid to do anything other than what Allied Barton wants.
This is a true Scandal and cover up. It is ashame that Datacampus Customers do not know the real true concerning their security. To have such a lack in operational procedures, over worked employees, lack of proper training, at such a high security Datacampus is ridiculous. Allied Barton is stealing money from there customers and providing minimum in exchange. No wonder why we have hackers, and intels stolen at a high rate. The company mimicks it ethics and values after the military. However, being ex military, they are absolutely nothing like the real thing.
Please change your security company ASAP. This goes out to comapnies like: Cogent, Comcast, Fibertown, Level 3, Windstream, Harris County Jail System, ION, IBM, AT&T, etc. Be warned that you and your property are not properly protected, and they are stilling your money.
I wanted to be able to warn others, because I know first hand from the Corporate side, and the entry level side.
You have been warned. There are better companies out there than Allied Barton such as Top Gun, Black Water, and others that take security seriously.
chooch
browns town,Indiana,
United States of America
Allied Barton
#4REBUTTAL Owner of company
Tue, October 11, 2011
It seems this type of practice is what that company does, The same similar practice is going on at there Burns Harbor Site, There is a total lack of communication there and the CEO"S Care absolutely Nil for there security guards, They use them and discard them like trash.There policy there is THEY ARE EXPENDABLE,They constantly change there policies as they see fit, and if that don't work, They blame the little people fire them and get more just so they can keep there own jobs.They truly need to be monitored by the company that hired them.
L.J.M.
Humble,Texas,
USA
To the original poster of this report.
#4Consumer Suggestion
Sun, September 04, 2011
I submit this response based solely on what you wrote here. I wasn't there nor in your situation although in over two decades I have been in or involved in similiar situations. I am not trying to "bust your chops" or call you out so please take this response as coming from a party with no vested interest in your situation or ax to grind. I also do not know the laws of your state or how they fit in with the matter.
You wrote you were with this company for six years. That is a long time for anyone to be in contract security regardless of company and to be posted at one facility for most of that time is not all that common, either. Some might say you were there too long. You did not state if you were a guard of a supervisor. This is also a factor.
Call offs and overtime are a way of life in contract security and some I have dealt with have a certain manditory overtime clause built into to your employment agreement when you were hired. I don't know if that is the case here. They will always have more openings than people.
You are/were assigned to an energy company. The fact that you lasted two years much less five plus at a client like this suprises me. Energy companies, by their very nature, WANT a high turn over in their contract security...at least the ones I dealt with did. The reasoning behind this is simple: they do not want the guards becoming too familiar with either the employees or the property. There is also a LOT of politics...politics you should try your best to stay out of...at EVERY company, assignment, and property.
From what you wrote, you did do a legitimate security function in some areas in monitoring properties far away from your assignment. I would assume that you clearly documented your activities, notifications, etc. while doing this job. If you didn't or did so incorrectly, then you're pretty much slammed. Your job is primarily to observe, document, and report. You cannot be responsible for a lack of response at a distant property after you have called it in in a hopefully timely manner. If you are getting repeated door prop alarms at this distant facility...you should be documenting this and submitting it to the client via your chain of command on official letterhead. This will cover you, but only barely. A "violation of policy" use in removing someone from their assignment is nothing more than an excuse and a poor one at that, although one that will stand. As far as the thief you reported having run of the property...there are so many different varibles here. The thief was propbably quite familiar to the property, perhaps an ex-employee who had been let go. From reading this, in my personal opinion, this was most likely the issue here. I do not know about your client's policies , but it was obvious the suspect was recognized or he wouldn't have just be able to piggy back in at a secure location. You also are not responsible for the other guard services response. They have their own contract/supervisors/managers and so on. Once you report it, except for follow up, it is their ball.
As far as the amount of your duties, if you were doing all of these by yourself. Then you were overloaded (this depends on the amount of activity you have at your post). Again, this is done as a cost saving procedure but it does effect your ability to respond and perform your duties. You cannot be everywhere and do everything at the same time. Both the client and the guard company know this.
When you started writing about the other people, what guards and supervisors are doing, etc. this threw a rock into the stew. You should only worry about doing your assigned job as it pertains to you and you alone. You do your shift and then you go home. It is not your job to be concerned about what the other members of the security guard force are doing. That is a job for the supervisors and the guard company to deal with. If you felt this was getting out of hand and starting to involve you or make you uncomfortable, my suggestion would be to request a transfer. The client, especially an international conglomerate like this, knows what the guards are doing out there and most likely are indifferent to it. If they were all that concerned, then you would be wearing their uniform and not that of a contractor.
The guard contractor also is aware of this. Their goal is profit and it is looked at strictly from that approach.
You wrote you have a college degree, this might be a time to use that to your advantage. Contract guard work is not a career and as I said earlier, the fact you were with this company as long as you were suprised me. The basic fact is that contract security guards are meant to serve as an escape route for the client that hires them; a scapegoat if you will. It is and should be considered a form of unskilled temporary labor. While it does happen, law enforcement and security guard work are two different ends of the spectrum and while they may resemble each other is certain areas, they are completely different animals. To use a guard job (unless you're working for a nuclear powerplant or similiar) as a stepping stone to a law enforcement career is not realistic. If something goes down that is "bad", it WILL effect your future employment opprotunities whether or not you were directly involved or not.
Neither the client nor the guard company is your friend. The guard company wants to make money; the client wants someone disposable when the time comes; and you should just be there because you need the job at this point in your life. Take this as a learning experience and move on. If the things going on at your assignment were as bad as you wrote, think: DO I REALLY WANT TO GO BACK THERE AND SCREW UP MY LIFE?
I wish you all the best.