GEO is an equal opportunity employer focused on the development of our workforce with zero tolerance for all forms of workplace discrimination and sexual harassment. Responsibility for workforce initiatives lies with our Chief Human Resources Officer.
Today, women comprise more than half of GEO’s U.S. workforce and play a significant role in our leadership and management. Of GEO’s 14,384 U.S. employees, 51% are female. Women account for 55% of our corporate employees, 41% of our facility security staff, and 48% of those serving in management positions as directors and above.
Women are also involved at the highest levels of our organization. Of the seven current members of GEO’s Board of Directors, three are women. In all areas of our business, GEO strives to achieve wider racial and ethnic diversity. Across our organization, under represented minorities of the United States – including African American, Hispanic and Latino, Asian, Pacific Islander, Native Hawaiian and Native American/Alaskan – currently account for 69% of our U.S. employees.
Minorities comprise 48% of GEO’s corporate workforce in the U.S., 74% of our facility security staff, and 54% of those serving in management positions as directors or above. GEO’s employee population is also diverse by age.
GEO is proud to support our local communities, and we recruit more than 90% of our workforce from these communities.
GEO offers competitive employee compensation and benefits. For the last calendar year, the average GEO security officer starting wage was $27.62/hour, and the average GEO employee annual salary was approximately $61,756. GEO’s employee benefits generally include the following:
GEO employees can set up a Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account that lets them use tax-free dollars for eligible dependent care expenses and GEO matches $250 for a $1,000 plan year contribution.
GEO’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP) provides assessment, short-term counseling, referral, and coaching services to all GEO employees. It’s provided at no cost to employees and their household members and is completely confidential and available 24/7/365.
It is also a valuable resource for celebratory life events such as welcoming a new baby, adopting a pet, purchasing a home, planning for retirement and more. Counseling services are available in person, by text message, live chat, phone, or video conference.
GEO has a partnership with Purchasing Power that allows employees to purchase various items large and small at a discounted rate when such a need arises. Employees can purchase these items and pay for them over 12 months through payroll deductions.
GEO employees and their family members (parent, spouse, and child) are eligible to further pursue their educational goals by receiving reduced tuition rates on a variety of accredited online degree programs in business, education, healthcare, and other disciplines provided at 10 different higher education institutions.
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A tuition reimbursement program is also available for GEO employees pursuing their education as they work to develop their skills and enhance their job performance. Tuition reimbursement is provided to eligible employees for courses offered by accredited colleges, universities, and secretarial and trade schools.
In the last calendar year, GEO provided approximately $91,000 in tuition reimbursement to 80 employees. Separately, GEO’s subsidiary, BI Incorporated, offers an education assistance program to its full-time employees with at least one year of service. For more information on GEO’s educational opportunities please visit https://jobs.geogroup.com/benefits.
In addition to the above, BI Incorporated offers an Education Assistance Program that is available to full-time BI employees with at least one year of service. Employees can take advantage of this benefit by first completing an application process, then enrolling in the approved degreed program and accredited college. Each employee enrolled in this program can receive up to $3,500 a year in reimbursements based on the grades they receive. Employees can access the necessary forms via the GEO Care Intranet or contact Human Resources.
GEO engages in interactive processes to ensure that qualified individuals with disabilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as amended by the ADA Amendments Act, as well as under
all applicable state or local laws, are afforded a reasonable accommodation in the workplace for their disabilities. GEO fully supports and complies with all applicable federal, state, and local laws.
Throughout our organization, we recognize the needs of employees facing challenging life circumstances and respect their rights under the Federal Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Last year, 1,425 U.S. employees utilized the FMLA.
In each of our operations throughout the U.S., GEO complies with all federal, state, and local labor and employment laws and regulations. We have zero-tolerance anti-discrimination and anti-sexual harassment policies. These policies are covered as part of the training conducted for all our U.S. employees and include detailed instructions for multiple ways for employees to report incidents.
GEO welcomes the participation of labor unions in our facilities and respects the rights of individual employees to choose whether or not to join labor organizations. We are proud of our strong labor relations, and nearly half of our employees belong to a union.
To further our support for our employees to decide for themselves if they want to be represented by a union for the purposes of collective bargaining, GEO has made a commitment to not conduct anti-union campaigns if a union files a Petition of Certification for Representation with the National Labor Relations Board.
In most cases, GEO will voluntarily recognize a union when they obtain the requisite number of union authorization cards. Furthermore, GEO has a Neutrality Agreement with the International Association of Machinists and Aero Space Workers and the National Federation of Federal Employees.
As a result of these efforts, GEO has seen an increase in union participation and membership growth at our facilities. In particular, GEO saw increased union representation from the National Federation of Federal Employees and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
In the United States, employees in 58 of our locations are represented by unions including:
GEO has a robust training program for staff at all levels of the organization. Our training of managerial, administrative, and security staff is based on the standards set by the American Correctional Association (ACA). The training requires a minimum of 120 hours of training within the staff member’s first year of employment and 40 additional hours of recurring training on an annual basis.
The GEO Continuum of Care® Training Institute trains all staff from the time of hire and on a regular basis throughout their employment. The training institute creates and implements staff and facility development needs through a needs analysis. GEO incorporates feedback from staff and participant surveys as well as research trends to develop training curricula and lesson plans. Our staff development plans include basic training, refresher training, advanced training, skillset certifications, and new managers training.
TRAINING TOPICS INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO: