skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Pittsburgh Security Guards Rally for Job Security

play audio
Play

Thursday, October 9, 2014   

PITTSBURGH - Steel City security guards rallied Downtown on Wednesday to demand greater job security, and to point out many of the private contractors hired by high-rise owners or managers don't offer their workers enough training, room for advancement, or sufficient pay for the modern-day challenges security guards face.

Kim McGowan, a security guard with contractor Chesley Brown, has been patrolling the same building for 16 years. She says her experience is unusual in an industry where turnover is high due to low wages, and believes the frequent turnover heightens the need for standardized training in areas from terrorism to workplace violence.

"We are on the front lines," says McGowan. "When something happens - like a medical emergency, if somebody fell, a couple arguing at a bus stop, a fire in the building - we're the first ones there."

The security guards are not union members, but are working with 32BJ SEIU to change that. They say one of the attractions is the union has developed a 40-hour training program for private security officers that is already being used successfully in New York City. There are no current training requirements for security contractors in Pittsburgh.

McGowan says Pittsburgh's downtown vacancy rate is low, and more businesses and people in those buildings means more responsibility for public safety. She adds the guards are also convinced joining a union would ensure pay and benefits are fair for all workers.

"We're not getting treated equally," she says. "They have their favorites. We devote a lot of our time and a lot of our lives to these people. I feel we need more respect."

At yesterday's security guard rally, paramedics, firefighters and clergy members all were on hand to support their efforts.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

Social Issues

play sound

A 2023 study from the University of Nebraska Medical Center concluded the number of Nebraskans with a mental health or substance abuse disorder has pr…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021