Thinking about the FAMILY?

Hello fellow LEO's

I am very interested in becoming a Agent in your fine department but I have a few questions.... I am 30 yrs old and have 9 years of experience as a LEO in a large busy agency. I am married and have 3 young children.I will be completing my four year degree within 1 year and planning to get my masters.

We are very attached to our own parents(live 2/4 hrs aways) and want our kids to know and have constant contact with other family members. I've heard that Agents contantly relocate during there first few years, inwhich im not a fan of, unless the movement slows w/ senority. My wife has her own career and wants to advance in her profession.

* How does and a USSS family cope/adjust to the requirements of the service. ( does the wife stay home, work part time, do the kids constantly change schools, etc)

* What about credit scores- As a parent of 3...I am paying big money for daycare, mortgage,etc inwhich I do not have the best credit score/history.

*Eyesight- I have to wear glasses to drive, shoot, etc. I am considering LASIK surgery, is it mandatory or can I wear glasses?

*Physical Training- I am in good/average shape, but I am a poor swimmer?

*What is the starting pay few for a Agent. How long would it take to reach $70k-100K? How is the retirement?.. do you recieve 40,50, 60, 75% after 25 years?
thanks

************************************************** ***************
PS- these are serious questions and would kindly ask for some serious/ helpful responses/advice.....thank you :lol:

[Retired and Content]

I hope you receive some replies from active duty agents, but in the short term here is the opinion of a retiree.

The information I'm receiving from active agents is that their needs, and the needs of their families, very definitely take a back seat to the needs of the mission in the eyes of USSS management. In my view this has always been true, but never more than now.

There are some threads on this board that you should review. You will see some very bitter statements from some current employees. You should also note that many active agents are seeking ways to move to other federal agencies rather than complete a career with the USSS due to excessive travel and time away from home and family.

There are other federal agencies which permit much more stable family relationships than the USSS. I suggest that you look around some more.

Note, however, that the retirement provisions are quite good in federal service; particularly the health care benefits. Do look for federal opportunities.

Best wishes to you.

TO R & C

THANK YOU FOR THE REPLY,

COULD YOU PLEASE ANSWER A FEW OF MY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE REQUIREMENTS,CREDIT, SWIMMING, AND FAMILY.

WAS IT DIFFICULT FOR YOU/ CO-WORKER DURING YOUR CAREER? WHERE AGENTS GETTING DIVORCES DUE TO THE TRAVELING?

IF A AGENT IS ASSIGNED TO A OFFICE IN A SLOW/ SMALLER REGION AND IS NOT VISITED BY THE PODUS OFTEN..WHAT IS A AGENTS NORMAL ROUTINE? DO THEY STILL TRAVEL DESPITE THEIR LOCATION?

VERY CURIOUS!

[Retired and Content]

TO R & C

THANK YOU FOR THE REPLY,

COULD YOU PLEASE ANSWER A FEW OF MY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE REQUIREMENTS,CREDIT, SWIMMING, AND FAMILY.

WAS IT DIFFICULT FOR YOU/ CO-WORKER DURING YOUR CAREER? WHERE AGENTS GETTING DIVORCES DUE TO THE TRAVELING?

IF A AGENT IS ASSIGNED TO A OFFICE IN A SLOW/ SMALLER REGION AND IS NOT VISITED BY THE PODUS OFTEN..WHAT IS A AGENTS NORMAL ROUTINE? DO THEY STILL TRAVEL DESPITE THEIR LOCATION?

VERY CURIOUS!

Frankly, I've been retired too long to give you up-to-date answers to your questions. I hope an active agent will do so.

But, I understand the divorce rate is quite high now. Note also that young children become very resentful of their dad's absence, believing that the job is more important to him than they are.

There are no "slow" regions. If the President Of The United States (POTUS) is not visiting in your area the odds are you are being assigned to travel in support of his visits to other areas. You can count on it! Also remember that there are quite a number of other people the Service protects, including visiting foreign heads of state. Travel is overwhelming and probably will remain so for the foreseeable future.

I hope an active agent will answer some of your other questions. Don't forget to read the other threads on this board. Some of them were written by active agents.

Best of luck.

As a 17 year USSS spouse, we moved 4 times in 10 years. Our marriage, level of commitment to each other and our faith were probably stonger than the above average USSS family (and we were newlyweds when he was hired). We had one child and financed our first home with a VA loan. Having said that, my spouse, because of previous military and LEO experience was started as a GS 7, which wasn't a lot, salary wise. However, you do advance quickly and the pay steps are much more "automatic" than in the past. Your spouse will NEVER be guaranteed employment and "the service" will never take her employment into consideration when your position is up for transfer. It's all about where THEY need and want YOU. The size of the office really doesn't matter when it comes to frequency of travel. You'll be placed on "ROTA", which is a rotation list that will require your name to be placed on a list every so many weeks/months and when your name comes up you go wherever/whenever for 2-3 weeks at a time. That's the "rule of thumb" for every Special Agent and has been for as long as I can remember. During this time you'll probably make lots of overtime money and can usually telephone your family but forget about whether it's someone's birthday, anniversary, etc... IF an immediate family member dies or your child gets extremely sick they'll let you come home, otherwise not. Our child broke 2 arms, had her 1st birthday, many Easters, Christmas, anniversaries, etc.....alone. Yet, when my mother died unexpectedly the USSS had my husband back in the country within 36 hours. A lot of this will depend on how supportive the SAIC (Special Agent In Charge) of the local field office that you are assigned to is. Some are true leaders and try to be mentors to their agents and others are less than stellar--just like any other profession.

As for being close to your immediate family in the short term---if there's a field office in your vicinity that's hiring and you get extremely lucky, then you might get to stay there for 4-6 years. After that you are most definitely gone. You will be asked where you'd like to move to BUT you're NEVER guaranteed. It's very rare that you'll be given your 1st choice. Out of 4 moves, we got our 1st choice 1 time.

If your credit is really bad and you don't have a compelling reason to justify it, then you won't get hired. Get the LASIK surgery--your eyesight has to be corrected to 20/20 (I'm almost sure). They will also check body fat, cholesterol, heart rate, etc...You must be in EXCELLENT physical fitness and excellent overall health.

USSS partners have to be very independent and capable of making many decisions alone. It's left up to the stay -at -home parent to explain to the kid(s) why mom/dad has to say "goodnight" on the phone so often. The flip side is, ie. our child developed a unique interest in social studies. Every time Dad went on a trip we made a game of it and explored the city, state, or country he was visiting. She also developed a more patriotic view of our nation and the role her father played in "serving and protecting" it.

You can go to the USSS website and get most of your employment facts from there. From the sound of your questions I sensed a lot of hesitation about your spouse giving up her profession and your willingness to leave your extended family. I don't much blame you. Everything is a trade-off. I chose to marry my husband and let the chips fall where they did and never looked back. I wouldn't change a thing.

USSS agents are the cream of the crop. You will not find a finer or nicer group of LEOs in any agency across the nation. I know this firsthand because, at some point in time, during my own career I worked with ALL of them.

All of R & C comments are right on. In over 20 years as an SA in the SS, I found as others will agree a small office is no guarantee of less travel, often times the opposite. The comments of the USSS spouse should be carefully considered. I am not really sure this is the appropriate job for you based on your statements, but only you can decide.

[worfusa2008]

While the Suits at HQ profess to be family oriented, that is all eyewash. For the last 40+ years, the unspoken truth has been that if They wanted you to have a personal life, they would have issued it to you on your Property card as: 1- Life, Personal, Optional.

At this stage in your life, the only person to benefit from your coming on board will be your wife's divorce lawyer.

While the Suits at HQ profess to be family oriented, that is all eyewash. For the last 40+ years, the unspoken truth has been that if They wanted you to have a personal life, they would have issued it to you on your Property card as: 1- Life, Personal, Optional.

At this stage in your life, the only person to benefit from your coming on board will be your wife's divorce lawyer.

Remember the Oldsmobile slogan "This isn't your father's Oldsmobile" which meant it's better?

Well we can't say "This isn't your father's Secret Service" because that one sucked too. Now days "This isn't your grandfather's Secret Service." And that's not because it's better now --- it's worse. Sadly.

If you are so unhappy with the way you are or were being treated then by all means transfer. If youe already retired under the metro system count your blessing and keep quite. If you retired under metro youve got the best retirement system in the world, so why complain? If you are under CERS or FERS then transfer to one of the many oigs. Of course with your apparent attitude none of the oigs run by former usss people would probably hire you.

It all depends on where you work. I know several older USSS agents who work in smaller offices (2 or 3 agents in medium or small size towns) they work 9 to 5, almost never travel more than 100 miles from their office and investigate wire fraud, counterfiet, forged check rings etc 90% of the time. Sure they might be called to assist in a larger city a few times a year with a detail. Every one of them makes over 100k a year.
As a new agent you can bet on spending time in a large city and making a lot of money on over time details, traveling during an election year etc. When the president is in town you can count on working an irregular schedule that week, etc.

As a current SA, I would tell you that if you want to have a family (or a life period), than you should probably look at another agency like the FBI, DEA, or ATF. Those agencies have recognized the need to balance work/life issues other than in a family emergency. USSS management has still not recongnized this, even though every official e-mail says they do. Having worked with other SA's from other agencies, I can tell you that their work/life balance is vastly different. The FBI does not have a move policy like the USSS does, however you are required to do time in a "big" field office. If you begin your career in a big field office, you will probably never have to move unless you want to get promoted. In the USSS, there is a default pressure to get promoted and those that don't want to be a boss are looked down upon as having nothing to provide to the agency.

The biggest thing to look at, in my opinion, is this: How many agents leave other agencies to join the USSS? Not many. How many USSS agents leave to go to other agencies? More than any supervisor will ever admit to...on or off the record.

Although there is a lot of dull information in Ron Kessler's new book Inside the President's Secret Service, as well as a lot of insider gossip which no agent should have consented to disclose, there IS a lot of insightful information towards the end of the book regarding the management attitude of "burn 'em out, use 'em up and discard 'em."

And this is not coming from retirees, most of whom have a fierce loyalty to the Service the way it used to be, but from currently employed agents who are fed up with the way it is now.

If you don't want to buy the book then get it from the library. You will be appalled!

All of R & C comments are right on. In over 20 years as an SA in the SS, I found as others will agree a small office is no guarantee of less travel, often times the opposite. The comments of the USSS spouse should be carefully considered. I am not really sure this is the appropriate job for you based on your statements, but only you can decide.

I agree with the above posting. Based on your comments I believe you would be better off considering a career with another federal law enforcement agency. While out of district I had a dog die, washing machine and other appliances break down, kids in the hospital, on and on. I once had an overseas assignment departing three days before Christmas and was gone for two weeks. I understand those were the good old days, I understand things are worse now.

[quote="Retired USSS SA":3t2vicvn]All of R & C comments are right on. In over 20 years as an SA in the SS, I found as others will agree a small office is no guarantee of less travel, often times the opposite. The comments of the USSS spouse should be carefully considered. I am not really sure this is the appropriate job for you based on your statements, but only you can decide.

I agree with the above posting. Based on your comments I believe you would be better off considering a career with another federal law enforcement agency. While out of district I had a dog die, washing machine and other appliances break down, kids in the hospital, on and on. I once had an overseas assignment departing three days before Christmas and was gone for two weeks. I understand those were the good old days, I understand things are worse now.[/quote:3t2vicvn]

The above post caused me to reflect on the period of my White House assignment. My wife was left to cope with similar domestic problems, and we had small children at home.

Upon returning from one overseas trip I scooped up the wife and kids and we drove down to McDonald's. As we sat and talked she told me how confined she felt at home with small children and little interaction with other adults. Then she expressed appreciation that I had taken her out to eat................ AT MCDONALD'S!!!

I was horrified to realize that while I was out traveling around the world and eating fine meals on per diem, the woman who I adored was so desperate to eat out that she considered McDonald's a treat.

From that day forward for the rest of her life (she passed away near our 50th wedding anniversary) I took her out to dinner to a nice restaurant at least once a week unless I was out of town on assignment.

Often we get so caught up in our work that we fail to consider the negative impact of the job (and our absences) on our spouse and children. I understand the absences are currently long and frequent. I am periodically asked by someone to discuss the prospects of working for the Service with one of their friends or relatives.

I tell the truth as I understand it and recommend that they find work with some other federal agency.

It's sad that I have to do so.

So Im currently in my first semester of college, and Im thinking about joining the reserves after I finish this semester. Ive been thinking about joining the military for a looong time, but Ive never actually committed to it. What do you think? Anybody currently in the reserves or who was in the reserves who can offer any advice? I talked to a recruiter and he said not to waste my time with the reserves, and just go active duty. Was that just recruiter BS or was he telling the truth?

Thanks

So Im currently in my first semester of college, and Im thinking about joining the reserves after I finish this semester. Ive been thinking about joining the military for a looong time, but Ive never actually committed to it. What do you think? Anybody currently in the reserves or who was in the reserves who can offer any advice? I talked to a recruiter and he said not to waste my time with the reserves, and just go active duty. Was that just recruiter BS or was he telling the truth?

Thanks

Walter, I believe you are in the wrong thread on this forum. It relates to the U. S. Secret Service, not the military.

Harris first of all why are you asking this on the Secret Service blog? I served in the 82nd Airborne. I'm not sure what your MOS is... for combat I would definitely say go active. Reserves don't get the level of training, schools, or combat rediness that active units do. Plus you'll get deployed for a year as a reservist. I would wait until you finish college. Go ROTC and become an officer. You'll get way better benefits, better pay, and better treatment. I left college to enlist, and if I could do it all over again I wouldve finished college and then gone the Officer route. Being an Officer also looks way better on a resume. That's just my take on it.

Harris first of all why are you asking this on the Secret Service blog? I served in the 82nd Airborne. I'm not sure what your MOS is... for combat I would definitely say go active. Reserves don't get the level of training, schools, or combat rediness that active units do. Plus you'll get deployed for a year as a reservist. I would wait until you finish college. Go ROTC and become an officer. You'll get way better benefits, better pay, and better treatment. I left college to enlist, and if I could do it all over again I wouldve finished college and then gone the Officer route. Being an Officer also looks way better on a resume. That's just my take on it.

Could Walter be a possible troll since he has not responded in any way in five days?

Harris first of all why are you asking this on the Secret Service blog? I served in the 82nd Airborne. I'm not sure what your MOS is... for combat I would definitely say go active. Reserves don't get the level of training, schools, or combat rediness that active units do. Plus you'll get deployed for a year as a reservist. I would wait until you finish college. Go ROTC and become an officer. You'll get way better benefits, better pay, and better treatment. I left college to enlist, and if I could do it all over again I wouldve finished college and then gone the Officer route. Being an Officer also looks way better on a resume. That's just my take on it.

Could Walter be a possible troll since he has not responded in any way in five days?

He probably just posted in the wrong forum.

Trolls try to stir things up.

.