Guarding Philadelphia art in question

    The security guards at the Philadelphia Museum of Art say they’re not trained to deal with a disaster situation inside the galleries – as in the case of a fire or violent attack.

    The security guards at the Philadelphia Museum of Art say they’re not trained to deal with a disaster situation inside the galleries – as in the case of a fire or violent attack.

    The revelation is part of the guards’ campaign to be recognized as a union.

    The Museum does not employ the guards directly – the 130 men and women are hired and trained by Allied Barton Security Officer Services.

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    The guards have voted themselves into a union, but Allied Barton has appealed the vote to the National Labor Relations Board. The NLRB’s decision is pending.

    Nate Alston has been a guard at the Museum for 10 years. He says in that time he’s received general training only once by Allied Barton.

    Nate Alston: I don’t get paid well enough; my company doesn’t care about my family. Why should I care about the artwork, or the people in the building? All we asking for is training so we can care, and you can show you have somebody responsible to look after your property.

    An Allied Barton spokesman says it stands by the quality of its training.

    The Museum guards say the new Picasso exhibition poses no unique security threats.

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