Any bar employees/owners here? (Chicago: insurance, employment, college)

[ChiGuy2.5]

I need some advice. I am thinking about becoming a part time bouncer/security person. I am not motivated by pay. I am looking for something to do on my weekends aside from drinking. I would just like to work every other weekend, or every Friday but be off every Saturday, something like that.

The questions I have are, is my limited availability feasible for bar management? Obviously they need the most help on the weekends, but I am not sure if that means I would need to work EVERY Friday AND Saturday? Is there anything I should need to know about being security? I have zero paid experience, but I am a 6'1" 225lb Male. I work out a lot and have the build for it. I also have experience in college acting as security for 500 person parties. Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance.

[Attrill]

Bar managers want people who are available when needed, and shifts for any position with a bar or restaurant will be given to the people who have the greatest availability. Frequently servers and bartenders are expected to cover slow nights and make very little money in exchange for getting to work the real money making shifts on the weekends. I'm pretty sure it's the same for security.

[ChiGuy2.5]

Originally Posted by Attrill

Bar managers want people who are available when needed, and shifts for any position with a bar or restaurant will be given to the people who have the greatest availability. Frequently servers and bartenders are expected to cover slow nights and make very little money in exchange for getting to work the real money making shifts on the weekends. I'm pretty sure it's the same for security.

See, I imagine security and bar backs would be the exception to this rule. Thats because during off-peak hours they dont need security or bar backs. I could be wrong though...

I know for a fact I have never two bouncers at the door during a weekday, but its very common on weekends.

[chet everett]

...does not mean that they are not "available". Folks that own even fantastically crowded / successful drinking establishments generally have to keep costs low. If their "go to" bouncer comes by early in the evening and is told "go home" the owner will compensate by calling 'em back IF / when the crowd picks up.

For places that are even more "shoestring" the owner / manager they might just have a list of "go to" bouncers / security that they rely on but don't really keep "on payroll". Typically burly men are not as valuable as those that have connections to CPD / CFD /City Council/ Chicago Dept of Consumer Protection & Business Affairs -- City of Chicago :: Liquor Licenses

"We don't want nobody that nobody sent"


Honestly if you don't have connections on the City side OR are not already pals with guys that own / run a bar this is sorta silly to consider as a viable way to even kill time. There are insurance requirements for the establishment to maintain and the downsides are pretty big. Heaven forbide you do something that causes a lawsuit. You really want to have to deal with something that could ruin your ability to work your regular full-time job?

The families that I know that do own / run bars in Chicago have a pretty tight connection to their insurers as well good legal representation. Bad things happen that never make the news -- from "slip and fall" to all sorts of questionable "harassment" claims to serious stuff like some over served idiot ending up near dead or in some fatal incident the whole staff at a popular bar has to be prepared to deal with the not-so-nice side of either criminal or civil courts...

[soulful]

I would be really concerned about opening myself up to the litigation that can come part and parcel with the job. Not worth it for a pt position in my opinion. And the liability insurance the bar may carry sometimes doesn't follow you after employment ends. So unless you plan to stay at that particular establishment for life you can be very screwed. One angry patron making a false statement about what was said, or how they were touched, etc etc etc. I would run to another profession (IMO).