At eight the ten applicants and the seven of us, including Courtney, were sitting at the meeting table. I handed out the individualized forms; the only difference was the name.

Jones Security, a division of Jones Business Groups

Jones Security offers Charles Wilson III the position of Security Guard at Frost Borough University effective June 1, 2014.

The basic terms and conditions of this offer are as follows:
1. Base Salary $40,000 per year equal to $769.23 weekly or $19.23 hourly wage. Pay checks shall be available weekly on Friday after 8AM.

2. The standard week shall consist of 40 hours. Rotating shift work applies to this offer. All hours over 40 shall be paid at time and a half.

3. There shall be 10 paid holidays:
a. New Years Day
b. Presidents Day
c. Good Friday
d. Easter
e. Memorial Day
f. Fourth of July
g. Labor Day
h. Thanks Giving Day
i. Christmas Day
j. Birthday holiday (A floating holiday that may be taken any time during the calendar year.) Any employee required to work on the above holidays shall receive a $10 dollar per hour holiday bonus ($80.00 per shift) and receive a day off with pay to be taken within 30 days of the holiday.

4. An employee temporally assigned as shift supervisor shall receive a 5% pay bonus.

5. Vacation shall be 2 weeks, after 5 years of service the employee shall receive 3 weeks.

6. Sick time. An employee shall receive 5 sick days (these require a Doctor’s slip).

7. Medical. Basic medical coverage shall be provided by Suma Insurance. In network shall require $25.00 co-pay. Out of network shall require $50 co-pay. All prescriptions shall be filled with generic drugs with $10.00 co-pay. Non-generic shall be 50% of cost with a annual maximum annual out of pocket of $1000.00. Details are available on the Suma website. Plan number 2014JBGXXZZ1414

8. Dental. 1 cleaning and 1 set x-rays per year per family member with a maximum of $1000.00 of maintenance per family member. Dental charges are to be limited to Tridents Standard fee limits. Charges in excess are to be paid by employee at time of service. Details are on Tridents website. Plan number 2014JBGNNCCA.

9. Eye Care. One eye exam per year per family member with glasses and contacts at 50% cost based on Dumas standardized eye care fee chart. Details on Dumas website, plan number 2014JBG162b

10. No tattoos or body piercings shall be visible when in uniform.

11. Five uniforms shall be initially supplied by JBG.

12. The employee shall be neat and well groomed at all times while on duty.

13. The employee shall maintain height and body weight ratios within 10% of AMA recommendations.

14. All employees are required to complete an annual physical at a medical practice of the companies (JGB) choosing including random drug testing at the digression of HR and the compliance contractor.

15. All employees must perform above 98% on annual weapons qualifications.

16. All employees shall receive:
a. Code of conduct manual.
b. Electric communications manual, IT guidelines and policy manual
c. JBG employee guidelines and Corporate Policy manual
Violations of the rules from any of these Manuals can result in suspension or immediate termination.

17. There will be a 9 month probationary period.

This offer for employment shall be valid for 48 hours.

“The plane will leave for Frost Borough at 11 so you have a couple hours to think it over or ask questions. You can take it home and discuss it with your significant other and e-mail or fax it back to us within the 48 hour limitation,” I said.

“BJ, pick up the com phone, please,” the voice was Karen’s, another part time employee Vicky had hired to work on Sundays.

“Sly is back with the morning’s refreshment run and has several boxes of donuts. Where did you want them to go?” she asked.

“They are for the meeting up here. Send them up when someone gets a free minute,” I said.

A few minutes later Wendy walked through the door carrying the four dozen donuts. She was wearing her usual almost-nothing thong bottom and barely-there top.

“How is the tanning business going this morning?” I asked.

“Very busy, everyone wants those last minute tans for vacations and graduation,” Wendy replied.

“Sly, Becky and you are on the list to take the stats test for college in two weeks, you are still studying in Lisa’s class, aren’t you?” I asked.

“Yes, Mom and Dad would be hurt if I didn’t do well but I think Mrs. Lisa would be hurt the most,” she replied.

“I would be hurt as well. If you remember, ‘you go to college’ was the condition to let you work here,” I said.

“Yes, I know. Dad wants me to go to the Naval Academy and has a sponsor if I want to go. I have moved so many times I can not remember all of them. I do not want to do that anymore,” she said.

“Do your best. I am trying to work out something for the three of you. I think you will like it if I can make it work,” I said. A couple more words and she headed back to the tanning booth. I saw ten heads follow her out the door.

I took a chocolate donut to have with my coffee – yes, just one. The others took some as well. The rest of my mates excused themselves to do other things. We each had an after lunch date in the gym with a favorite exercise machine. When you make an exercise program a daily habit, it is hard to break.

Some of the applicants took their copy and went to various places in the office to talk quietly on their cell phones, to their significant other I guessed.

I sat at the table quietly reading over the copy of the master of the job offer one more time to see if I had forgotten something or could have worded it better. I had a second sheet that they did not have. It was the budgeted cost for each position from the expense program.

Base salary $40,000.00
Health insurance $14,400.00
Dental $1500.00
Eye care $494.50
Uniforms $625.00
Vacation $1538.46
Annual physical/w drug test $850.00
Sick time $769.23
Annual estimated training cost $2500.00
$63,527.19 x10 = $635,271.90
Those numbers did not reflect the employer mandated tax that was equal to 10%.

I looked up when I decided that there was nothing to change and reading it another time would make no difference.

Ronnie Baines and Sandra Couples, the two ex-marines, had moved and were sitting across from me. They slid the signed application to me.

As I noted that they were signed I said, “Welcome aboard. The work won’t be as hard as going through all this. The being ‘politically correct’ will be the worst part. The biggest thing will be to stay in shape. You may have to run from time to time – hopefully it won’t be to gunfire.”

While the others finished up their private conversations and drifted back to the table one at a time I talked with the marines about their time in the sand box. Old war stories never get old, I seemed to remember more and more bits and pieces about every one of them as time went by. I guess it was the mind finally coming to grips with the harshness of the events and allowed me memories like that.

They each had spent time in some of the very places and camps I had been stationed at. I asked about some of the old officers that I knew and if they had ever run into any of them.

Sandra Couples had seen action in the off-hand way that I had. She was a Battle Tank Repair Specialist and quickly learned that equipment that does not move becomes an easy target and makes the enemy braver.

Ronald Baines, on the other hand, had been Special Forces. He had seen and done his share of horrible things. I was thankful that we had had the shrinks look into the minds of this group of people. Sometimes the things we had done haunted us in the worst way. It did make me wonder why he had not stayed in and moved up or had been hired by many of the state police units, with so many of them forming swat and terrorist response teams. His type was usually in high demand as trainers in a variety of fields.

By departure time we had eight of the 10 signed job offers in our hands. The other two wanted more time to consider the offer and discuss it with their family.

Edit by Alfmeister