Bailiffs
Career Overview
Career Description: Maintain order in courts of law.
Industry: Protective Service
Other Job Titles for Bailiffs:
- Correctional Officers and Jailers
- Criminal Investigators and Special Agents
- Immigration and Customs Inspectors
- Sheriffs and Deputy Sheriffs
- Transit and Railroad Police
- Private Detectives and Investigators
- Security Guards
- Crossing Guards
Personality Profile
- Realistic: Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
- Investigative: Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.
- Artistic: Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.
- Social: Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.
- Enterprising: Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.
- Conventional: Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.
- First Interest High-Point: Primary-Rank Descriptiveness
- Second Interest High-Point: Secondary-Cutoff/Rank Descriptiveness
- Third Interest High-Point: Tertiary-Cutoff/Rank Descriptiveness
Common Work Tasks
- Collect and retain unauthorized firearms from persons entering courtroom.
- Maintain order in courtroom during trial and guard jury from outside contact.
- Guard lodging of sequestered jury.
- Provide jury escort to restaurant and other areas outside of courtroom to prevent jury contact with public.
- Enforce courtroom rules of behavior and warn persons not to smoke or disturb court procedure.
- Report need for police or medical assistance to sheriff's office.
- Check courtroom for security and cleanliness and assure availability of sundry supplies for use of judge.
- Announce entrance of judge.
- Stop people from entering courtroom while judge charges jury.
- Contact animal owners to inform them that their pets are at animal holding facilities.
- Write reports of activities, and maintain files of impoundments and dispositions of animals.
- Issue warnings or citations in connection with animal-related offenses, or contact police to report violations and request arrests.
- Answer inquiries from the public concerning animal control operations.
- Examine animal licenses, and inspect establishments housing animals for compliance with laws.
- Organize the adoption of unclaimed animals.
- Train police officers in dog handling and training techniques for tracking, crowd control, and narcotics and bomb detection.
Emerging Tasks
- Check courtroom for security and cleanliness and assure availability of sundry supplies (e.g., notepads) for use of judge, jurors, and attorneys.
- Escort prisoners to and from courthouse, and maintain custody of prisoners during court proceedings.
- Maintain court docket.
- Provide security by patrolling interior and exterior of courthouse and escorting judges and other court employees.
- Screen persons entering courthouse using magnetometers, x-ray machines, and other devices to collect and retain unauthorized firearms and other contraband.
- Screen, control, and handle evidence and exhibits during court proceedings.
Work Activities
- Analyzing Data or Information: Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts.
- Assisting and Caring for Others: Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
- Coaching and Developing Others: Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills.
- Communicating with Persons Outside Organization: Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
- Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates: Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
- Controlling Machines and Processes: Using either control mechanisms or direct physical activity to operate machines or processes (not including computers or vehicles).
- Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others: Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
- Developing and Building Teams: Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.
- Developing Objectives and Strategies: Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them.
- Documenting/Recording Information: Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
- Drafting, Laying Out, and Specifying Technical Devices, Parts, and Equipment: Providing documentation, detailed instructions, drawings, or specifications to tell others about how devices, parts, equipment, or structures are to be fabricated, constructed, assembled, modified, maintained, or used.
- Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships: Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
- Estimating the Quantifiable Characteristics of Products, Events, or Information: Estimating sizes, distances, and quantities; or determining time, costs, resources, or materials needed to perform a work activity.
- Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards: Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
- Getting Information: Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
- Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates: Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance.
- Handling and Moving Objects: Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
- Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events: Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
- Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Material: Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
- Interacting With Computers: Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
- Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others: Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used.
- Judging the Qualities of Things, Services, or People: Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems: Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
- Monitor Processes, Materials, or Surroundings: Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
- Monitoring and Controlling Resources: Monitoring and controlling resources and overseeing the spending of money.
- Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment: Running, maneuvering, navigating, or driving vehicles or mechanized equipment, such as forklifts, passenger vehicles, aircraft, or water craft.
- Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work: Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
- Performing Administrative Activities: Performing day-to-day administrative tasks such as maintaining information files and processing paperwork.
- Performing for or Working Directly with the Public: Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests.
- Performing General Physical Activities: Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling of materials.
- Processing Information: Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.
- Provide Consultation and Advice to Others: Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups on technical, systems-, or process-related topics.
- Repairing and Maintaining Electronic Equipment: Servicing, repairing, calibrating, regulating, fine-tuning, or testing machines, devices, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of electrical or electronic (not mechanical) principles.
- Repairing and Maintaining Mechanical Equipment: Servicing, repairing, adjusting, and testing machines, devices, moving parts, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of mechanical (not electronic) principles.
- Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others: Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others.
- Scheduling Work and Activities: Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
- Selling or Influencing Others: Convincing others to buy merchandise/goods or to otherwise change their minds or actions.
- Staffing Organizational Units: Recruiting, interviewing, selecting, hiring, and promoting employees in an organization.
- Thinking Creatively: Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
- Training and Teaching Others: Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
- Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge: Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
Detailed Work Activities
- apply appropriate physical restraint
- authorize entry or exit of individuals
- communicate details in protective services settings
- enforce laws, ordinances, or regulations
- escort prisoners, defendants or individuals needing protection
- evaluate premises for cleanliness
- explain rules, policies or regulations
- follow law enforcement methods or procedures
- monitor entrance or exit of persons
- monitor order or court procedure in courtroom
- oversee work progress to verify safety or conformance to standards
- patrol or guard area or premises
- recognize public safety hazards
- use arrest, search, or seizure legal statutes
- use firearms
- use oral or written communication techniques
- recognize disease or parasites in animals
- recognize public safety hazards
- serve or issue summonses or subpoenas
- use first aid procedures
- use interviewing procedures
- use knowledge of investigation techniques
- use oral or written communication techniques
Tools & Technology Used on the Job
- n/a
Education, Training & Experience
Overall Experience
Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience may be helpful in these occupations, but usually is not needed. For example, a teller might benefit from experience working directly with the public, but an inexperienced person could still learn to be a teller with little difficulty.
Job Training
Employees in these occupations need anywhere from a few months to one year of working with experienced employees.
Education
These occupations usually require a high school diploma and may require some vocational training or job-related course work. In some cases, an associate's or bachelor's degree could be needed.
Examples
These occupations often involve using your knowledge and skills to help others. Examples include sheet metal workers, forest fire fighters, customer service representatives, pharmacy technicians, salespersons (retail), and tellers.
Salary & Wages
- Average hourly wage (2007) -$17.74
- Average annual wage (2007) - $36,900.00
Projected Employment Growth
- Projected growth (2006-2016): 11.18%
- Projected need (2006-2016): 2,080
- Employment (2006): 18,608




