I have doubts

[Steve Bloyd]

I first saw mention of this organization while perusing the internet. I have to admit I have serious doubts about the legitimacy of this organization due to the sensitive information requested and the lack of a "real" employer. How do I know this is just not some elaborate 0000?

[admin]

Originally posted by Steve Bloyd
I first saw mention of this organization while perusing the internet. I have to admit I have serious doubts about the legitimacy of this organization due to the sensitive information requested and the lack of a "real" employer.
IPIU has over 18,000 members and member agencys worldwide. No sensitive information is required to join the union as a member. There is only one membership program in the USA that requires either a government issued private investigators license, attorney license, law enforcement ID, or any other ID that is monitored through the FBI NCIC's wants and warrants database. An NCIC Waiver is available by sending an email to ncic@ipiu.org for details. The remaining option is for IPIU to issue an ID card based on the same monitoring. If an applicant chooses IPIU to do so, then the sensitive information is required and is governed by all federal standards to safegiard the information. In 14 years there has never been a breech in security. As to your other question regarding employers, if the member employers choose to have IPIU prescreen their candidates, that is a free benefit to them. Addtional employer referrals and assignments are posted in over 30 private forums that only a Level 4 member can "see". You have Level 1 at the moment, which is a free guest user.


Originally posted by Steve Bloyd
How do I know this is just not some elaborate 0000?
You don't . . . . unless you check the facts and all of the information available to you. There are over 7000 registered members here at the forums, and over 44,000 comments posted by members. You have access to 16 forums, including the unsolicted testimonials forum. Earnings are posted in the private forums as IPIU forbids any public testimonial as to how much money a private investigator earns on assignments. By the time a member reaches Level 4, IPIU knows who they are, including having their signed Code of Ethics on file.

In the meantime, you may wish to read and visit the Testimonials Forum (http://www.ipiu.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=48) , which is all unsolicited comments by IPIU "union" members (who have paid their dues) and who have achieved some level of satisfaction. Again, these are unsolicited, and they are posted by union members with real names. :)

And last, IPIU is certainly not for everyone. It's hard work to pursue a different course for a career change. It's time consuming to study the forums, the guidelines, the software, the operational manuals, the exams, and all of the details preparation that goes into an assignment. There is no quick answer to becoming a private investigator. Some people start and then give up. Other people may start and then someone says "boo" to them and they go and run to take a job cleaning toilets rather than invest the sweat into a more interesting career. (Although, I did clean toilets when I was young and I did find it interesting from a scientific approach. ;) )

Anyway, enjoy your visit with us. But please review our Forum Rules and Mission Statement before posting comments. You seem like a very experienced professional (I read your profile).

Click Here for rules and mission statement:
http://www.ipiu.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2914

[Michaela Peterson]

Is this the real thing , or is it a 'club'???
I am real unsure about paying for services, especially when it comes to a career??Any body out there actually found work doing this?? I mean steady over $15 and hour WORK?? Do they search for jobs for you??
Please help me and my confusion,,,
M.Peterson

[William Brassfield]

Hi Michaela;
I understand you confusion, I was in your shoes just over a year ago


Originally posted by Michaela Peterson
Any body out there actually found work doing this?? I mean steady over $15 and hour WORK??

You bet! there are several members here who are working as full-time Private Investigators (in fact I just congratulated one no more than 10 minutes ago. He starts in 3 weeks). Most of us, myself included, are working part-time to build up experience while keeping our regular full-time jobs to keep the bills paid.
I understand you being skeptical, or should I say careful, with all the 00000 going on these days (I know some folks who investigate nothing but that) you can never be too careful.

Also, be sure to drop by the forum members introduction lounge (http://www.ipiu.org/forums//forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=45) and introduce yourself so we can get to know you better.

"See" you on the boards :cool:

[David Copeland]

Originally posted by Michaela Peterson
Is this the real thing , or is it a 'club'???

IPIU is the International Private Investigators Union, a trade association of professional private investigators, attorneys, and case examiners. (I guess you could call it both a club and real). :)


Originally posted by Michaela Peterson
I am real unsure about paying for services, especially when it comes to a career?
Then don't.

Enjoy your free forum membership which gives you access to about 20 different discussion forums of licensing topics, as well as trainee questions, etc. Most web surfers who come along and spend a few weeks participating and getting to know the other private investigators become union members by choice.

Whatever career you choose, you have to pay for, unless the job pays so little that they offer on-the-job training such as fast food or factory warehousing. But this is not a blue collar career where the training can be found sometimes on the job. This is a white-collar professional career that leads to a state issued license. Nothing is free when you add up the time spent.


Originally posted by Michaela Peterson
Any body out there actually found work doing this??
You will not find a single topic posted by any union member in any of the public forums that boasts of their personal earnings. It is against the Forum Rules, because IPIU does not want to induce member applicants to become a union member based solely on the personal earnings by any of their 19,000 members. They wish to promote joining a trade union association by choice, because that is what the applicant truly desires to become in their choice of career.

However, in the union member only forums (which are Level 4 access), there are multiple earning topics that members post their pay checks in to gain more recorded experience for more assignments. I can say that the very least anyone has ever posted is in the $15/hr to $18/hr range for a newcomer trainee, while most of the average earnings are in the $28/hr to $40/hr range. Some more experienced investigators are posting average earnings in the $150 to $300/hr range, depending on the assignment.


Originally posted by Michaela Peterson
Do they search for jobs for you??
Yes!

Every job opening posted in the private forums is done so by the efforts of IPIU as a free benefit to union members. The only searching necessary is to search this one website! And we presently have over 100 private forums for assignment referrals nationwide.

<hr>
Now, what I suggest is the following:

1) Read the earlier comment posted by a forum member, and read what was answered by Admin above.

2) The next item is for you to click on the following Newcomer's Topic and follow all of the instructions before posting any more questions that may end up being duplicative:

Click here:
Newcomer Topic Link (http://www.ipiu.org/forums//showthread.php?s=&threadid=5008)

PS: This particular topic is now closed. Enjoy your free participation. :)