Stand for Security - First contract in Seattle & Bellevue

Security officers' trim uniforms hide that fact that most do not earn enough to make ends meet.  As part of a national movement to raise industry standards, 700 local security officers with SEIU Local 6 achieved victory with their first collective bargaining agreement in Spring 2008.

The average wage for an officer in greater Seattle is $11.50 per hour. Most security companies operating locally had been offering health care that cost at least a third of officers' wages. Low wages & benefit and poor working conditions spur industry turnover between 100-300% annually.  Officers usually receive substandard training - hardly the quality that the thousands of people in skyscrapers downtown should expect.

Over the last year, Sage organized community support for rallies and actions, attended delegations to downtown building managers, and focused 2007's Walk with Workers on the security officers' campaign.

After bargaining for over a year, security officers in Seattle and Bellevue ratified a first-ever, areawide, 5-year Agreement with their employers: ABM, AlliedBarton, Northwest Protective, Securitas, and Star Protection.

This Agreement establishes for the first time:

• new minimum wages with guaranteed wage increases over the five-year term of the agreement;
• an individual medical plan, with established employer contribution rates, which will begin upon ratification and increase every year for the life of the agreement;
• dependent coverage added after 4 years;
• guaranteed vacation benefits and sick leave accruals; and
  
• a grievance process and job security protections—establishing better standards for all security officers in this area.