Employee Handbook – Security Business
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Why are policies so important for a security business?
Did you know that without an Employee Handbook or a Standard Operating Procedures Manual, past practice becomes policy as a matter of law? Imagine yourself as a security business owner defending yourself in court on a negligence lawsuit, because your security officer, who walked your client’s employees to their vehicles every night for the last two years, called in sick and one of those employees got mugged in the parking lot. Although your company was hired to protect your client’s property and act as a deterrent to theft, etc… your security officer unknowingly bound you into a personal protection contract with the client’s employees by walking them to their car every night.
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Take these other examples into consideration:
1. You notice one of your security guards seems to be under the influence of a drug. You order him to report to the nearest lab and take a drug test. The results come back that he is using marijuana. You fire the security officer. He applies for unemployment and gets it. Think it doesn’t happen? Think again…your company has to have a properly established drug-free work policy and must also state how and when your employees are tested. By the way, when you lose unemployment claims, your experience rating increases, which leads to a higher payroll tax percentage the following year for unemployment.
2. You get a call at 7:55 AM that Security Officer Jones is not coming to work because he has a sore throat. This is the 3rd time this week that Officer Jones has called out for his 8:00 AM shift with 5 minutes notice. You scramble to cover his shift and even lose your contract. Jones goes for unemployment and you lose. Let’s pretend you don’t lose the contract, but you terminate Jones. He applies for unemployment and you lose again. Without a clearly stated policy for sick calls, you are left holding the bag once again.
3. Your night watchman who works at your client’s warehouse decides that he is going home to eat for an hour, returns to the warehouse facility has been vandalized. You lose the contract, the guard applies for unemployment, and you lose. Let’s assume that you don’t lose the contract, but you terminate the guard for leaving the facility. Without a post-abandonment policy, you lose the claim.
Unlike our Standard Operating Procedures, which clearly outlines what your security personnel should do in a particular situation, such as how to handle a sick or injured person, etc…our Employee Handbook was designed to alleviate your liability and create established policies for human resources type situations.
What is inside
A complete employee handbook written for a security company rather than adapted from a generic one — the conduct, licensing and duty sections assume officers, posts and shifts.
- General Information
- Attendance and Punctuality
- Code Of Conduct
- Personal Conduct
- Non-Disclosure Of Information
- Employee Files & Privacy
- Classification Of Employees
- Employment Applications
- Immigration Law Compliance
- Background Verification Checks
- Licensing and Certification
- Probationary Period
- Selection Of Relatives
- Other Employment
- Posting Of Other Positions
- Transfer Requests
- Staff Reduction
- Call Off Procedures
- No Call / No Show
- Post and Employment Abandonment
- Termination and Separation Process
- Employee Health and Wellness
- Drug & Alcohol Screening
- Physical Examinations & Medications
- Drug and Alcohol-Free Environment
- Employee Accidents and Injuries on Duty
- Modified Duty
- Exposure To Blood Or Bodily Fluids
- Safety and Accident Prevention
- Illness On Duty
- Return To Duty Clearance
- Smoke-Free Environment
- Employee Compensation
- Salary Administration
- Pay Practices
- Time & Attendance
- Paycheck Distribution
- Paycheck Advances
- Paycheck Shortages
- Payroll Deductions
- Garnishments & Child Support
- Termination Paychecks
- Employee Benefits
- Paid Vacation
- Funeral Leave
- Jury Duty
- Paid Holidays
- Family & Medical Leaves
- Leaves Of Absence
- Training Programs
- Company Training Programs
- Employee Information
- Equal Opportunity Employer
- Learning Culture
- Employee Harassment
- Employee Violence
- Grievance Procedures
- Performance Problems and Corrective Action
- Chain Of Communication
- Welcome and About This Handbook
- Our Philosophy
- Performance Evaluations
Who it is for
- New guard companies hiring their first employees
- Companies moving officers from 1099 to W-2 who now need a handbook
- Owners who need a signed acknowledgement on file for each employee
- Firms whose current handbook came from another industry
How to make it yours
Every place your business details belong is marked with a bracketed token — [YOUR COMPANY NAME], [YOUR ADDRESS], [YOUR PHONE] and so on. Search for the bracket, replace it once, and it updates wherever it appears. Sections that depend on where you operate are marked [CONSULT YOUR STATE REQUIREMENTS], so you can see at a glance what needs checking against your own state's rules rather than hunting for it.
What it is not
It is not a contract of employment, and it does not set your pay rates, benefit levels or PTO accrual — those are yours to fill in. Sections that vary by state, such as ban-the-box hiring language, are marked rather than assumed.
Questions
- Is this handbook written for security companies specifically?
- Yes. The conduct, licensing, duty and post-abandonment sections assume uniformed officers working posts and shifts, which is where a generic handbook usually falls short.
- Does it include an acknowledgement page?
- Yes — a signature page employees sign and you keep on file. A separate Acknowledgement of General Orders form is also included in the full package.
- Can I add my own policies?
- Yes. It is a standard editable Word document with consistent heading styles, so new sections match the existing formatting.
- How long is the handbook?
- Around 43 pages, depending on how much of it you keep.
Professionally prepared templates, not legal advice. Requirements vary by state — have an attorney review before use.
