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South Florida security officers, including veterans like Niccole Copelli, gathered on Tuesday outside the Broward Government Center in Fort Lauderdale to demand higher wages, better training, and paid holidays. Represented by the 32BJ SEIU union, which includes 175,000 workers nationwide and 2,000 in South Florida, the officers voiced concerns about their challenging work conditions and financial struggles.
Security Officers Rally: The Demands
Copelli, a Marine and Army veteran, has worked as a security guard for nearly a decade and currently guards the Miami-Dade Metrorail. She describes the role as demanding, often requiring 10-12 hours of constant vigilance.
“It demands a lot,” she said. “It demands our constant attention.”
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Fellow guard Jahron Brown highlighted the risks security officers face daily, equating their responsibilities to those of law enforcement. “We absolutely do the exact same thing that police do,” Brown said. He shared his experience of being injured while assisting a coworker during an assault and undergoing months of therapy for torn tendons.
Officers like Copelli also deal with emotionally charged situations. She recounted saving a man from suicide at a Metrorail station, emphasizing the importance of her role in even seemingly minor incidents.
Financial Struggles and Inadequate Training
Union members emphasized the need for higher wages to keep up with the rising cost of living. A 32BJ SEIU survey from October revealed that 55% of security officers skipped meals, and half reported late or missed rent or mortgage payments.
Paul Jerome, a screener at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, noted, “We still struggle to keep the roof on top of our family. We struggle every day: but our job, we take it seriously.”
Training was another area of concern. Jerome criticized the generic nature of current security training programs, which lack specificity and depth. “Training now is very generic. It doesn’t really give you specifics on what you need to do,” he said.
High Standards, Low Compensation
Helen O’Brien, vice president of 32BJ SEIU, pointed out that many security officers are required to meet rigorous standards, such as having associate or bachelor’s degrees or military or law enforcement backgrounds. Despite these qualifications, they often perform police-like duties without comparable pay or benefits.
“They do very important work, and they’re not being paid or treated that way,” O’Brien said.
Strategic Timing for the Rally
The security officers rally was strategically held the day after Veterans Day to highlight the lack of paid holidays for many security officers, a significant number of whom are veterans. Additionally, Broward County commissioners were meeting just steps away from where the officers demonstrated.
“These are the people that you walk past back and forth every day,” Brown said. “Please make sure that you understand that their job is helping you do yours.”
The officers’ current contract with 32BJ SEIU, covering around 2,000 workers, expires at the end of December. Union leaders are pushing for improved wages, better benefits, and enhanced training to address the challenges these workers face daily.
