Louisiana Voice

An Alabama firm that was awarded a million dollar contract in September to provide security for at least 15 state office buildings in Baton Rouge is late paying most of the 74 guards on its Baton Rouge payroll and has bounced paychecks for several others only weeks before Christmas.

JAT Bureau of Services and Management of Montgomery, Alabama, sent memorandums to employees last Thursday informing them that their paychecks, already late in coming, will be distributed on Tuesday of this week.

JAT, which employs 200 persons in all and which had 2009 revenues of $2 million, had the low bid of $1,061,866.11 during bid openings on Aug. 4 and was awarded the contract to run from September 1, 2010 through June 30, 2011, according to documents provided by the Division of Administration.

The contract stipulates that unarmed guards receive a minimum of $8.50 per hour and armed guards $9.50. Supervisors are to receive at least $12 per hour under terms of the contract.

One guard showed a copy of his paycheck dated November 17, which was returned because of insufficient funds. Guards have continued working despite either not receiving paychecks for several weeks or after receiving paychecks that were not honored by banks.

One unconfirmed report said the company’s contract also includes as many as five other state office buildings in other cities and that employees in those locations also have not been paid.

Attempts were made to contact JAT Chairman Arthur Coleman, but an employee who answered the phone said he was not available. She gave a cell phone number for him but he did not answer when called.

The request for proposals (RFP) issued a month before the bid opening apparently did not require that bidders post either a bid bond or performance bond. The RFP did stipulate, however, that the successful bidder carry liability insurance and that the state had the right to cancel the contract for unsatisfactory performance with 15 days written notice.

State buildings where JAT has a contract to provide security include the Claiborne Building which houses the Division of Administration that awarded the firm its contract, the Office of State Police, the State Library Building, the Baton Rouge State Office Building, the Poydras Building, the First Circuit Court of Appeal Building, the State Data Processing Building, the Galvez Building, the LaSalle Building, the LaSalle Building garage, the Department of Environmental Quality Laboratory building, the Iberville Building, the Bienville Building, the Division of Administrative Law building, and the Wooddale State Office Building.