Security guards underpaid, says union

The 10,000 security guards working in the industry are underpaid and undervalued, it was claimed today.

The industry is currently working with the Private Security Authority (PSA) on a new licencing system to improve standards in the sector.

SIPTU said there were a number of reasons for the problems with pay and conditions in the sector.

“It’s principally the emergence of contract security services as a cheap alternative to in-house security and the continuation of outsourcing on that basis,” said security branch secretary Kevin McMahon.

At a seminar in Dublin on the issue, he said the union wanted to make companies aware of the risks of hiring low cost operators to protect their property.

The PSA, which was set up last year, has given security companies a deadline of April 1 to apply for door supervisor and security guarding licences for their employees.

It will be the first time the industry has been regulated and companies who do not have the new licences will face prosecution.

SIPTU president Jack O’Connor said the improvement of standards in the sector would be one of its key demands at the national pay talks.

“We know from experience that in the absence of strong enforcement mechanisms, some employers will avoid compliance as a means of gaining a cost advantage over compliant competitors when tendering for contracts,” said president Jack O’Connor.

He said it was critically important that the PSA was given the inspectors it needed to identify rogue operators.