Deirdre Leach’s story is the story of the average security officer. 
She quit her job at a restaurant at O’Hare Airport, where she made almost $11 an hour and had health insurance, because she wanted more meaningful career. She started at Chase Tower at $9 an hour in 2003—sacrificing almost $2 an hour in pay—because she wanted to become a security officer to help people.
Five years later, making $11.15 an hour, she is struggling and still can’t make ends meet. Her take home pay simply doesn’t cover what it costs to support herself and her two sons in Chicago.
Working full time, 40 hours a week, all year, she only makes $23,192 –well below the $38,628 that the Economic Policy Institute found a family of three needs just to cover their basic expenses in Chicago.
Last year, Deirdre made enough in overtime to stay barely above water and hold onto her house, but this year, her company said it is eliminating most overtime to save money, which means there’s no way for her to make ends meet.
Deirdre takes home about $1,550 a month. Her mortgage is $956 – almost exactly the average housing cost in Chicago. That leaves her less than $600 a month to live on.
In the winter, her gas bills topped $200 a month and on top of that, her electric bill is $87 a month and her water bill is $22 a month. She pays $230 in credit card debt each month and another $80 for a transit card to get to and from work. That puts her $25 in the red before she even buys food.
Food is where she ends up having to cut corners. She spends just $150 a month to feed three people. Often, she makes a pot of greens and some string beans and that’s all she and her sons have to eat. If they have any leftovers, she freezes them because she can’t afford to throw food away.
“I make smaller meals because we have to stretch our budget,” she said. “Some dinners we just have vegetables because we can’t afford meat.”
It’s no wonder she’s in $5,000 in debt – all accumulated in the five years since she became a security officer. She’s had to use her credit cards just to be able to afford to eat, but now she’s reached the maximum limits on her credit cards and had to turn to a debt management company to consolidate her payments.
To pay that debts along with the basic essentials she needs to live, she has to juggle which bills she will pay each month and which she will have to let go. It means she’s behind on everything and worried all the time. She’s afraid she may lose her house because she’s missed payments and is now struggling to catch up on her mortgage.
Her house that she worked so hard to buy and is struggling to keep is going unrepaired, even though a leaky roof is damaging her walls and sewage backs up in her basement because she needs to replace the rotten catch basin.
She said she’s reached her limit: “If things don’t change with this contract, I’ve reached the point where I know I’m either going to have to find a second job or quit.”
Hearing her story, it’s hard to believe she works full-time protecting our city’s downtown. Chicago’s security is worth more.
Download First Defense: Chicago’s Security at a Crossroads