# First-Line Supervisors of Security Workers

US SOC code 33-1091. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/33-1091

Also called: Security supervisor, Security manager, Security operations supervisor, Guard supervisor, Site security supervisor.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **81,480** US first-line supervisors of security workers, with median pay of **$55,940** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2021, the May 2025 count is the highest. The earliest figure here is [an estimate](https://securityofficerhq.com/rise-and-fall-of-wackenhut-security) of **15,000** from 1955, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for first-line supervisors of security workers: IP camera networks and mobile guard tour apps, 2015 to 2023.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to grow 3.7% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=33-1091&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **26.2%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv)

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35. BLS publishes these counts as yearly survey snapshots and cautions against reading them as a precise trend.

## First-Line Supervisors of Security Workers employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1850
- Latest US employment: 81,480 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [4]
- Latest US median pay: $55,940 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [6]
- Outlook: +3.7% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [18]

### All 9 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1955 | 15,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., The Rise and Fall of Wackenhut Security [1] |
| 1960 | n/a | $4,800 (estimate) | Est., University of Missouri Libraries [5] |
| 1982 | 55,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Hallcrest Report I (Cunningham et al… [2] |
| 1990 | 75,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Hallcrest Report II [3] |
| 2021 | 55,450 | $50,240 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [4] |
| 2022 | 59,520 | $48,810 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [4] |
| 2023 | 64,900 | $54,580 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [4] |
| 2024 | 70,310 | $58,610 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [4] |
| 2025 | 81,480 | $55,940 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [4] |

## Sources (48)

### Employment series

1. [The Rise and Fall of Wackenhut Security — industry size and structure in the mid-1950s (SecuityOfficerHQ)](https://securityofficerhq.com/rise-and-fall-of-wackenhut-security), Security Officer HQ
2. [Hallcrest Report I (Cunningham et al., 1985) — Private Security and Police in America (OJP abstract)](https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/private-security-and-police-america-hallcrest-report), Office of Justice Programs / National Institute of Justice
3. [Hallcrest Report II: Private Security Trends, 1970-2000 (OJP abstract)](https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/private-security-trends-1970-2000-hallcrest-report-ii), Office of Justice Programs / National Institute of Justice
4. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)

### Wage series

5. [University of Missouri Libraries — Prices and Wages by Decade: 1960-1969 (BLS wage series, protective service)](https://libraryguides.missouri.edu/pricesandwages/1960-1969), University of Missouri Libraries / BLS historical sources
6. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)

### Tool eras

7. [Library of Congress — Pinkerton's National Detective Agency Records (introduction)](https://guides.loc.gov/pinkerton-papers), Library of Congress
8. [Security Info Watch — From Night Watchmen to Modern Security: A 50-Year Evolution (GardaWorld / Stephen Somers, 2025)](https://www.securityinfowatch.com/security-executives/protective-operations-guard-services/article/55272743/from-night-watchmen-to-modern-security-a-50-year-evolution), Security Info Watch / GardaWorld
9. [Security Journal — Industrial security protection in the United States before the Pearl Harbor attack (Springer, 2025)](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1057/s41284-025-00469-1?error=cookies_not_supported&code=fcab39c0-fd61-4f5f-a819-3b06b02986ae), Security Journal / Springer
10. [ASIS International — Certified Protection Professional (CPP) credential history (founded 1977)](https://www.asisonline.org/certification/certified-protection-professional-cpp/), ASIS International
11. [History of Security Guards — Hankering for History (CCTV and tour wand adoption)](https://hankeringforhistory.com/the-history-of-security-guards/), Hankering for History
12. [Trackforce — Best Security Workforce Management Software in 2025 (industry history section)](https://www.trackforce.com/blog/best-security-workforce-management-software-in-2025-in-depth-comparison/), Trackforce
13. [GuardMetrics — How AI Is Transforming Security Guard Companies (workforce management history section, Nov 2025)](https://guardmetrics.com/how-ai-is-transforming-security-guard-companies-guardmetrics/), GuardMetrics
14. [OfficerReports — What Is AI Security Guard Software? (history of guard tour technology, 2025)](https://officerreports.com/blog/what-is-ai-security-guard-software-defining-the-next-category-in-security-operations/), OfficerReports
15. [SDM Magazine — 2026 Predictions: Security Experts Talk AI, Proactive Deterrence, Video Analytics](https://www.sdmmag.com/articles/104966-2026-predictions-security-experts-talk-ai-proactive-deterrence-video-analytics-and-more), SDM Magazine
16. [Security Industry Association — The Next Evolution of AI in Physical Security (Feb 2026)](https://www.securityindustry.org/2026/02/26/the-next-evolution-of-artificial-intelligence-in-physical-security/), Security Industry Association
17. [Trackforce — ReportPro AI Launch (Help Net Security, Sep 2025)](https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2025/09/26/trackforce-reportpro-ai/), Help Net Security / Trackforce

### Forecasts and exposure studies

18. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 33-1091 First-line supervisors of security workers (2025: 82.7 thousand; 2035: 85.7 thousand; +3.7%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=33-1091&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
19. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 33-1091.00, human-rated β 0.262)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

20. [Pinkerton National Detective Agency history (Britannica)](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pinkerton-National-Detective-Agency), Encyclopaedia Britannica
21. [History of Burns International Security Services (FundingUniverse / company histories)](https://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/burns-international-security-services-history/), FundingUniverse
22. [History of Security Guards — Hankering for History (California 1915 regulatory first)](https://hankeringforhistory.com/the-history-of-security-guards/), Hankering for History
23. [Security Journal — Industrial security protection in the United States before the Pearl Harbor attack (Springer, 2025)](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1057/s41284-025-00469-1?error=cookies_not_supported&code=fcab39c0-fd61-4f5f-a819-3b06b02986ae), Security Journal / Springer
24. [The Rise and Fall of Wackenhut Security (Security Officer HQ)](https://securityofficerhq.com/rise-and-fall-of-wackenhut-security), Security Officer HQ
25. [ASIS International — Certified Protection Professional (CPP) credential (founded 1977)](https://www.asisonline.org/certification/certified-protection-professional-cpp/), ASIS International
26. [Hallcrest Report (1985) — Private Security and Police in America (OJP)](https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/private-security-and-police-america-hallcrest-report), Office of Justice Programs / NIJ
27. [Aviation and Transportation Security Act (Wikipedia) — enacted Nov 2001 in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, creating the TSA and federalizing airport security previously handled by private firms such as Wackenhut](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aviation_and_Transportation_Security_Act), Wikipedia

### Predecessors & successors

28. [Pinkerton Detective Agency — Allan Pinkerton's agency founding and organization (PBS American Experience)](https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/james-agency/), PBS
29. [BLS OOH — Security Guards and Gaming Surveillance Officers (career progression section)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/protective-service/security-guards.htm), Bureau of Labor Statistics
30. [History of Security Guards in the United States (FastGuard Service)](https://fastguardservice.com/history-of-security-guards/), FastGuard Service

### Present-day analysis

- [O\*NET 30.3 — First-Line Supervisors of Security Workers (33-1091.00)](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/33-1091.00), accessed 2026-06-05
- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs: Labor Market Impact Potential of LLMs (Science / arXiv)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-06-05
- [SDM Magazine — 2026 Predictions: Security Experts Talk AI, Proactive Deterrence, Video Analytics](https://www.sdmmag.com/articles/104966-2026-predictions-security-experts-talk-ai-proactive-deterrence-video-analytics-and-more), accessed 2026-06-05
- [Security Industry Association — The Next Evolution of AI in Physical Security (Feb 2026)](https://www.securityindustry.org/2026/02/26/the-next-evolution-of-artificial-intelligence-in-physical-security/), accessed 2026-06-05
- [Trackforce — ReportPro AI Launch (Help Net Security, Sep 2025)](https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2025/09/26/trackforce-reportpro-ai/), accessed 2026-06-05
- [Ambient.ai — AI Video Analytics in Physical Security (2026)](https://www.ambient.ai/blog/ai-video-analytics-in-physical-security), accessed 2026-06-05
- [Research.com — AI, Automation, and the Future of Security Management Degree Careers (2026)](https://research.com/advice/ai-automation-and-the-future-of-security-management-degree-careers), accessed 2026-06-05
- [GuardMetrics — How AI Is Transforming Security Guard Companies (Nov 2025)](https://guardmetrics.com/how-ai-is-transforming-security-guard-companies-guardmetrics/), accessed 2026-06-05
- [Trackforce — Best Security Workforce Management Software in 2025 (TrackTik Blog)](https://www.trackforce.com/blog/best-security-workforce-management-software-in-2025-in-depth-comparison/), accessed 2026-06-05
- [Verkada — AI-Powered Physical Security Platform Expansion (Security Sales, 2025)](https://www.securitysales.com/news/verkada-ai-physical-security-platform-expansion/618911/), accessed 2026-06-05

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.