Police Officer Preparation & Law Enforcement Resource - Archive

I thought that I'd post this here to hear other member's thoughts about this. I've been looking into this job for a while. Wackenhut has had some poor publicity, but this seems to be a squared away contract, which Wackenhut has held since 1965. This doesn't seem to be your regular Mall Ninja type of work. ;)

U.S. Department of Energy security contract

Security Police Officer (http://www.wsinevada.com/productgallery.htm) - Wackenhut Services, Inc - Nevada Operations (Nevada Test Site)

Security Officers must qualify with .40 cal pistol, M-4 rifle, and M-240 machine gun.

These guys guard the Nevada Test Site, 65 miles north of Las Vegas. Starting pay is $20.65 per hour, 12-hour shifts (minimum four per-week), time & one half after 8-hours, per-diem paid for each day of work, with full-benefits and Union representation.

If you don't have any extra hours per work week, the average annual salary after training works out to be $60,132.80. Salary goes up considerably, but I can't find the Union's webpage so I can't post the max salary, which I believe they reach after six years (?).

It seems very para-military, but the website mentions no requirement of military of law enforcement experience, although I'm sure it's a requirement. They put you through a 10-week Academy mandated by Department of Energy.

Steve, are you with a police dept now or still in the military? The position you mention in your post sounds like it is one step above security guard. Not being employed directly by DOE says volumes. Granted, Wackenhut has had the contract a long time, but it is still a pvt entity, not a local, state or fed agancy.

I have to say, the pay and benefits are far better than they start our new hires with presently, but it is not police work IMHO.

Steve, are you with a police dept now or still in the military? The position you mention in your post sounds like it is one step above security guard. Not being employed directly by DOE says volumes. Granted, Wackenhut has had the contract a long time, but it is still a pvt entity, not a local, state or fed agancy.

I have to say, the pay and benefits are far better than they start our new hires with presently, but it is not police work IMHO.

I'm presently employed as a full-time police officer.

I was in the reserve as an MP, hence my screen name. :)

Not being employed directly by DOE says volumes.

I have to say, the pay and benefits are far better than they start our new hires with presently, but it is not police work IMHO.

I don't believe DoE employs any of their own guard personnel other than GS-0084 series Federal Agents/Nuclear Materials Courier.

I have to point out that in no way was I implying that this is police work. I doubt they conduct any LE, pediod.

I'm not necessarily looking to cement myself down in law enforcement right away. Afterall, I'm only 22 :p. The pay and benefits for the NTS contract are hard to pass by if you can get in with them, and it seems to be a prestigous security assignment.

DOE uses all contract at most facilities. I have a buddy with DOE-OIG in Vegas who said it is a security guard position, with some fancy training. He stated most of the staff are retired military and law enforcement working a job in retirement. He said it is not bad, but is mostly perimeter security.

Not bad, but just immagine how many people are actually going for that position

Not bad, but just immagine how many people are actually going for that position

I'm a fairly confident person. The website states they're not currently hiring, but accepting applications. I might look further into it.

I'm presently employed as a full-time police officer.

I was in the reserve as an MP, hence my screen name. :)


Please clarify, you are a full time PO, but are looking to take a step down to the DoE job? Is the reason being, your current pay level is low? There are plenty of LEO jobs across the country that pay what the DoE is paying and then some. You are 22 yrs old and a fully certified PO, you are very marketable. The DoE job is something I'd would be interested in (after 28yrs on) as a retirement gig.

Please clarify, you are a full time PO, but are looking to take a step down to the DoE job? Is the reason being, your current pay level is low? There are plenty of LEO jobs across the country that pay what the DoE is paying and then some. You are 22 yrs old and a fully certified PO, you are very marketable. The DoE job is something I'd would be interested in (after 28yrs on) as a retirement gig.

There are other agencies I've been looking into. Not just this one thing. :)

I'm looking in the south Florida area, particularly the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department. I've rode with them, and it's a great place, with great officers.

I've only been sworn for four months, so I'm probably going to stay here for atleast a total of a year or two before moving on.

There are other agencies I've been looking into. Not just this one thing. :)

I'm looking in the south Florida area, particularly the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department. I've rode with them, and it's a great place, with great officers.

I've only been sworn for four months, so I'm probably going to stay here for atleast a total of a year or two before moving on.

Good thinking Steve. You are in a very enviable position at 22 with so many options open to you. It seems you are mature enough to handle it though.

Just a thought on that NTS position. I spent two months training there when I was in the army, at a place called Mercury Base. I have to say that the only perk was the proximity to Vegas. Besides that, I personally would not work/live out there for any extended time period for less than 100k a year. The place is a God-awful desert. Of course if you like that type of setting then it's no problem. It did have a sort of cool "X-Files" feeling to it.

I imagine it would be much like your position on Kwaj. A private company with a police services contract.

You'd probably have a good in on that position if you wanted it. I personally think it looks a little boring.

Looks like an okay retirement gig.

Id also have to check, but I think Alutiiq also has some sort of connection to Wackenhut.

My father and a couple of buddies work for Wackenhut at SRS near Augusta, Ga. That is also a DOE contract so I would assume it is very similar to the OP's place. They have a traffic division and a SRT team. From what I hear the training is pretty serious, so I don't think it's a step down giving the pay, benefits and training. Having said that, my dad has told me about plenty of sworn officers switching over to Wackenhut only to figure out that they don't like the slow monotonous days.

I work for Wackenhut...which is now RSS (Regulated Security Services). I work at Seabrook Station (the ONLY nuclear power plant in NH). I've been with the company for almost 4 years and can't really complain. However, many of my colleages tend to complain quite often. None of us can complain about the pay though...it's easy work with almost to much down time. With OT I cleared 70k last year...as an Officer too! The only thing that really sucks is the NRC's new policy to take effect by, I believe, October of this year regarding OT. It basically states that we can't exceed 48 hours in a given work week. For some Officers that is good news, but for myself it isn't. Yes, the training is above and beyond. Most local law enforcement agencies will admit that our training and "trigger time" is more frequent and a lot more in-depth.

Hey Steve. I currently service the kitchen hoods and exhaust system for the NTS. The security police there are not playing around. We just did a kitchen there that is approximately 50 minutes deep into the test site. Now, we did not know this, but the kitchen hall that we were doing was in a very small little 2 story building that looked as though it were built in the early 1800. Its was run down and falling apart. However, the owner of my company opened up a door to try and gain easy access to our equip that was outside. Within approximately 5 seconds of that door being opened, we had 6 Security Police Officer pulling up in 4X4 trucks and jumping out with what appeared to be M-16, and had them aimed at us and demanding us onto the ground or they would open fire. Now, I have been doing Security for the Casino' here in Vegas for almost 7 years, and never have I seen this kind of work go down. With that being said, these guys are not there to play games. They have all power and rights to shoot and ask questions later. The building we were doing was the actual fall-out shelter building. That is where the movie theatre of screens and the red phone from the President sits and the main button to launch lies. After this incident, the gentleman who was following us at this place at all times now currently holds the possistion of Safety Instructor for the NTS. He has worked for NTS for almost 40 years. He told me a few stories about the Civillian police there, and that they are the same for A-51. He was also employeed there for several years prior to opening the NTS. He didnt say much but he did say that they are above the law, so to say. I am trying to get a job in the Security field for the NTS, I am just getting my foot in the door with the hood exhaust cleaning company. Our company has done these kitchen for NTS since 1955. That is a solid contract. :)

Just wanted to weigh in here a little. I think the statement by the OIG friend is pretty misleading. Yes, all DOE installations are protected by contract employees, however there is a reason for that. Because at this point its not only policy, but law regarding cradle to the grave restrictions on Nuclear Weapons and Special Nuclear Material. Anyway, to say its a security guard job with some fancy training, implies to me that the OIG employee could never make the training that we undergo. The average hourly rate for Security Police Officers is 27 dollars per hour. That is averaged across the Nation, so some higher a few a little lower. There are Traffic divisions, Special Response Teams at Category 1 sites that rival ANY SWAT or teams around as evidenced by their YEARLY national wins at various competitions against LOA and Military teams. Its naive to think that the Government would have keystone cops responsible for the protection of the Nations "crown jewels". Far from it. SPOs have arrest authority under 10 cfr 1047 and are the ONLY entity authorized by Federal Law to use deadly force for the protection of property. 10 weeks at Kirtland AFB, then 6 more weeks of SRT training then on to more specialized training if your site employs them. SRS even has air insertion by helo. Annual recurring medical and physical fitness qualifications, semi annual multiple weapon systems qualifications along with specialized training qualifications. So, again it is for SURE NOT a security guard position with some fancy training. But it also is not LE for sure. If these guys use their LE authority then something bad has happened somewhere. Just thought id put my two cents worth in on this so that there was no confusion about it being a glorified security guard job. PM me if you want more info and ill be glad to share!

SPO-

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