AN EFFECTIVE GUARD FORCE

Although the number of guards required to provide adequate physical security of nuclear materials is often the subject of debate, there are more critical factors pertaining to the effectiveness and efficiency of the protective force. The quality of instruction and training, the utilization of modern technology and equipment, the careful analysis of guard functions, the preemployment screening and selection, as well as the competitive pay schedules are the basic questions that should be investigated thoroughly and satisfactorily resolved by the manager. Many studies reveal that a large percentage of the overall cost of a safeguard program is related to the salary of the protective force. This paper presents a method whereby this costly, yet important, commodity in the safeguards arena can be most beneficial.