Workplace Contractor Bullying – Handling Toxic Customers

While many organizations hire in-house security personnel, a significant portion of physical security services are delivered by contract services companies. In fact, contract security officers are responsible for protecting people, assets, brand identity, and critical infrastructure across thousands of businesses every day.

Unfortunately, customers who hire contract employees sometimes take greater license in mistreating those contractors or levying unreasonable expectations that they would never impose on their own employees – basically exercising a perverse power over the contractors. It isn’t unlike the way rental cars or rental homes are treated with far less respect than cars and homes that we own.  And while mistreatment of contractors happens in all industries, this blog is focused on the contract security industry.

Verbal abuse or “workplace bullying” happens in business interactions because a power dynamic exists. One person has power, or perceived power, and uses it to engage in behaviors that are both aggressive and punitive to get what they want. Unfortunately, in the world of contract security, that power dynamic is doubled. Not only does the customer have someone in a leadership position over security (power dynamic x1), that leader is overseeing contract employees (power dynamic x2). It also may surprise people that outside of targeted mistreatment of protected classes, there is very little if any legal protection against almost all but the most egregious or extreme forms of workplace bullying.

What does Contractor Mistreatment Look like?

We’ve all met them: contract customers who are high in position/title, likely low in emotional intelligence, and looking to build themselves up by pushing others down. They are the yellers and screamers, the finger-pointers, the name-callers, and the creators of miserable work experiences. They may do some or all of the following:

• Yelling and using disrespectful, aggressive communications

• Saying degrading, condescending things in front of others to “put contractors in their place”

• Name-calling and humiliating

• Threatening a contractor’s job security, personal security, reputation, and self-respect

• Using profanity or vulgar and inappropriate language or gestures

• Physical intimidation like throwing things, sometimes crossing the line and escalating to “innocent” slapping and punching, excused away as “all in good fun”  

• Demanding service beyond what’s appropriate contractually (like using security officers as personal protection for after-hours and non-work events)

• Using security officers as personal chauffeurs, personal assistants, or personal aids

• Expecting contractors to pick up tabs for meals and events that are outside of contractual scope

Any security contractor dealing with these types of behaviors is sure to be spending too much time and energy worrying about their own survival rather than focusing on the security and well-being of their customers. It’s a lose-lose situation.

Whose Problem is it?

Companies who place contract security officers with customer accounts need to equip their employees to recognize, respond to and get support for these situations. It is important to realize that ignoring or allowing this type of behavior to occur sends a message to all employees that they don’t matter and will erode morale and culture. You will end up paying for the bad behavior of your customer through damaged reputation, high employee turnover, and in some cases, lawsuits brought by disgruntled employees.

What does a solution look like?

Companies may not know what their employee experiences actually look like, as abusive customers rarely behave badly in front of leadership. Most importantly, therefore, is to equip employees with the knowledge and processes necessary to identify and appropriately deal with difficult customer situations. Such a program needs to help employees do the following: 

• Recognize – teach employees to identify inappropriate and/or abusive behavior, and understand their own roles and responsibilities

• Restrain – equip employees to avoid unnecessary escalation, and teach them de-escalation tactics to boot

• Record – provide guidance for employees to document behavioral incidents

• Report – establish reporting processes to support employee escalations

• Re-assess – once a situation is known to the company, leaders must assess the situation to determine possible courses of action, from implementing program elements that increase transparency of customer behavior, to addressing the mistreatment at a corporate relationship level, to terminating the contract in extreme cases

• Re-establish – once an appropriate approach is determined, it is time to re-establish the protective ground-rules and healthy working conditions

• Resume – finally, employees whose concerns have been addressed can return to work, feeling supported by their company and ready to focus on providing excellent security services instead of focusing on workplace survival

Remember, your business has a legal (and moral) obligation to provide a safe working environment. Once a business is aware that an employee has been mistreated by a client, they must manage the risk to the health and safety of this employee, and other employees who may deal with the same client. It doesn’t matter if the complaint comes from an employee who is directly affected, a coworker or supervisor, it needs to be investigated and addressed. Providing a safe, healthy working environment is not only a company’s job, but is the right thing to do. Remember - the people matter.

“All cruelty springs from weakness.” —Seneca, 4BC-AD65