06/03/2002
Is there going to be a requirement in the near future in the banking industry for a workplace violence policy?
05/06/2002
Does anyone have any statistics on the effectiveness of armed vs unarmed guards? Is there an impact on the customer/employee that we should consider? What liabilities should we consider? I am open to opinions, suggestions and anything that might help me with this decision. Statistics are very persuasive with the execs.
02/04/2002
I am the Security Manager and our branch office, located in a small rural town, has been robbed three times in the past nine months. In the first robbery, the robber wore a disguise and a gun was displayed. In the second robbery, no weapon was displayed AND the robber became nervous and just grabbed money from a customer and fled. In the third robbery, the robber wore a disguise, a knife was displayed and the robber went behind the teller line. There were at least a dozen customers in the branch at the time of the robbery. In all three robberies, the staff followed banking procedures, and there were no injuries.Senior management and branch personnel want to hire an unarmed security guard for 3 to 6 months. I expressed my concerns that a security guard may provide the staff with a false sense of security, escalate the situation toward more violence rather than controlling or deterring the situation, and present many liability issues.I have recommended the below listed action steps to deter a future robbery:<ol><li>Install additional cameras (2 exeterior and 1 at the rear entrance) and a monitor at the rear entrance. Approved by senior management.</li><li>Repair the locks on the doors leading behing the teller line. (The Branch never informed Maintenance the locks were broken.) Approved by senior management.</li><li>Consider renovating the interior of the branch to allow branch personnel to view customers entering via the rear entrance. (Currently, when indivdiuals enter the rear door, they must walk down a hallway before they can be seen by branch employees. All three robbers entered via the rear entrance.) Senior management is currently considering thsi request.</li><li>Install dye packs at the teller stations. (We currently have just a motion triggered vault pack.) - Approved by senior management.</li><li>Close the rear entrance to customers. Require customers to enter via the front door. - This recommendation was flatly refused by senior management.</li></ol>Note: We did meet with the local and state police to discuss possible action steps. Unfortunately, the police informed senior management they felt a security guard would act as a deterrent.I am having a difficult time convincing senior management not to hire a securty guard.Your thoughts on this matter would be greatly appreciated.Also, if you have any articles or statitistics regarding the use of guards, I would appreciate receiving a copy.
11/05/2001
Where can I find information on reporting to Board of Directors on Security annually?
08/06/2001
We recently had a situation where a bank employee's live-in boyfriend was threatening to kill her. To make a long story short, we had to close the branch one afternoon because it looked like that was where he was going to turn up. If we keep this employee, it's likely the situation will surface again. Did we handle it the correct way? Can we terminate the employee to get rid of the problem?