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Operating in Establishments
with No Hit Policies
by Ari Bolden
www.veritas-services.com
While most doormen are
aware that the nature of this job has changed considerably since the
days of the "bouncer", some establishments actually have in place
what they call 'no hit policies'. The NHP, besides being an insult
to our collective intelligence, means that the doormen are not to
punch, kick, head butt, or otherwise strike a patron in the course
of their duties.
Call me crazy, but striking a patron to get them out of the bar is
somewhat silly and even in the days of the bouncer, I am sure it
wasn't on the 'first' choice list. Restrain, hold, tie up; these
would be the first physical tools used in our profession. But
somewhere down the line, employers got the idea that bouncers would
smash a patron in the face in order to get them out of the bar.
The no hit policy was born.
Many NHP stipulate than any excessive physical force by a doorman
will be dealt with by immediate termination of employment. This is
great and I have no problem with such a policy.
But let's put the breaks on here for a bit.
As I have said in many of my articles and books, our operating
environment is hugely grey (not black and white) and there are
certain times when the 'no hit policy' may sound good on paper but
has no place in the real world. Let's examine when and when not to
use striking techniques in our jobs.
When Not to Strike:
Asking a patron to leave: As a general rule, no doorman should lay
hands on any patron unless a perceived threat has arisen. Simply
using your verbal management skills should get the drunk moving
along 90% of the time.
A patron being verbally abusive to you or staff: Hey, if you can't
take a little (or a lot) of verbal abuse in this job, you are in the
WRONG business. Emotionally upset patrons will yell and swear at you
all the time. They'll do everything they can to get under your skin.
Make sure not to smash them in the face when they make you angry.
Take it with a grain of salt.
Patron vs. patron fight: The importance of team work and back up in
our business means stopping the fight, separating the parties
involved and ejecting the aggressive person(s). The majority of our
job is to intercede when patrons are fighting. We restrain and hold
patrons that are fighting. Our first response is not hammering a guy
in the face to stop him from fighting. We use holds, locks, joint
manipulation, team work, pressure points, and verbal commands to
make them stop.
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When to Strike
Actively aggressive patrons towards doormen: If you have ejected
someone (or not letting someone in) from the bar and you notice that
they are showing signs of aggressive pre assaultive behavior, you
may need to strike in order to protect your self. The strike depends
on a few factors of course. You should verbally warn the person to
stay back and not approach you. If you have a genuine feeling that
they are going to act on their verbal or non verbal threats, it may
be time for a pre emptive strike. I generally use three types of pre
emptive strikes to keep someone away from me.
The first is the palm
heel strike to the face (which is actually like a face push more
than anything) with a quick verbal warning to stay back.
The second is the double hand chest push to keep the aggressive
person at bay.
The last technique I use is the front push kick to the stomach in
order to keep the bloke from advancing within punching range. I like
this one because it has a longer reach than the arms and it can be
regulated from a push to a strike, depending on your mood.
Actively aggressive patrons fighting doormen: When a person is
actively fighting you and they are trying to knock your head off,
self defense laws state that you can defend your self with no more
force than is reasonably required to stop the assault. If you have
fists hitting you in the face and you cannot "tie someone up", you
can strike the other person to stop their attack.
Patrons wielding weapons: Since this level is considered lethal
force, you are allowed by law to use whatever techniques that will
stop that attack from continuing. This includes strikes. You may be
forced to subdue the patron using high level lethal or maiming
attacks.
(as the quote goes: I'd rather be judged by 12 than carried by 6)
Other door staff being attacked by aggressive patrons: As I wrote in
my book, The Doorman's Credo, there is something called the
unwritten rule of bouncing. That is, if you find that one of your
brothers is being beaten by some asshole punter, you use whatever it
takes to stop him from doing so. Like police officers, you attack
one of us, expect to get hurt. We don't get paid enough to let
people beat the crap out of us. We endure so much shit week in and
week out that to go home to our families all busted up isn't worth
it.
Now, before you get on your high horse and start lambasting me for
being too old school, reread the situations in which I suggest
hitting is acceptable. I've been doing door work for over 10 years
and I am one of the easiest going stewards out there. Friendly and
patience to a fault. But if you open that special door, you better
be prepared what awaits you on the other side.
If your management comes down on you for using a striking technique
while executing your duties, ask them how they would have handled
it? If they tell you that absolutely no situation will require
striking, they are living in a fantasy land and are a danger to work
for.
Stay Safe
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