Is Your Guard Overburdened?

The hidden cost of asking security guards to do more than security work.

How Job Creep Happens

Let's talk about what could be happening at your facility right now.

It's been snowing a lot in Chicago this past winter. Your security guard is checking IDs, monitoring cameras, signing for packages, shoveling snow, and covering both interior & exterior building patrols. It feels efficient. You're maximizing headcount. Everyone's being helpful.

But here's what the data actually shows: You're not saving money. You're creating liability.

The Numbers Don't Lie

When security guards perform tasks outside their typical duties like signing and sorting packages or handling custodial duties, the injury risks change. The National Safety Council reports the average workplace injury requiring days away from work costs $42,000. Back injuries are common in lifting and moving tasks and can range from $47,000 to $80,000 per claim.

According to Bureau of Labor Statistics data, security guards who suffer workplace injuries requiring time off miss a median of 8 days, compared to 7 days for all occupations. The most common injury events? Falls (particularly to the same level) and overexertion. Both injury types are consistent with tasks outside typical security scope like moving equipment, handling deliveries, or performing maintenance/custodial work.

That "can you just..." request isn't just a favor. It's a liability decision

The Hidden Costs Start Stacking

Workers Compensation Exposure:

When guards get injured doing work outside their job description, your claim faces scrutiny. Was this in their scope? Were they trained? Some claims get denied entirely. Others get paid. At the end of the day your premiums increase.

Insurance Coverage Gaps:

Your general liability and professional liability policies assume employees are doing the work you contracted for. When guards perform maintenance, troubleshooting, or logistics coordination, policy gaps emerge. Is snow clearing on their official posted duties?

OSHA Compliance Risk:

OSHA requires employers to provide training specific to hazards employees will encounter. When guards perform work without proper training, violations carry penalties from $4,000 to $165,514+ for repeat offenses. The simplest of tasks such as being on a step-ladder can cost you if proper training, documentation, and warning notices are not posted.

Compromised Security Coverage:

While your guard is coordinating a delivery or troubleshooting equipment, what security function isn't happening? BLS data shows security guards experience assaults and violent acts at a rate of 14.4 per 10,000 full-time workers. That is more than five times the rate for all private industry workers (2.6 per 10,000). Every minute spent on non-security tasks is a minute not spent on the job they were hired and trained to observe and report.

The False Economy

Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data reveals the uncomfortable truth: security guards average $16.08/hour. Receptionists average $16.33/hour. Maintenance workers average $21.16/hour.

You're not saving money by having guards do other jobs. You're just shifting which insurance policy responds when something goes wrong and hoping it covers the incident at all.

What Actually Works

Clear scope definition protects everyone. Guards focus on security such as access control, monitoring, patrol, incident response. Other operational needs get staffed appropriately. Training matches actual duties. Insurance covers what people actually do.

At Securitas, our contracts specify exactly what guards will and won't do. When clients ask for additional duties, we have an honest conversation about proper staffing, training requirements, and liability implications. Not because we're inflexible, but because we've seen what happens when boundaries blur.

The question isn't whether your guard can handle packages or troubleshoot equipment. The question is what happens when they get injured doing it. Or when a security incident occurs while they're occupied with something else.

Take a Moment to Reflect

The next time you're about to ask your security guard to "just handle this one thing," pause and ask:

• Is this in their job description?

• Are they trained for this?

• What security function aren't they doing while they do this?

• If something goes wrong, will my insurance cover it?

  
  

That moment of reflection might save you $42,000 -- or $80,000 -- or six figures when you factor in OSHA penalties, premium increases, and compromised security coverage.

Ready to have an honest conversation about security scope and liability protection? We can be your trusted security advisor.