By Vernon Daley, Staff ReporterSECURITY FIRMS say they have had to send home some 2,000 security guards over the last five months because they cannot afford to pay them increases in the minimum wage, which took effect in January.
President of the Jamaica Society for Industrial Security (JSIS), George Overton, said the workers had to be sent home because companies could neither absorb the increased cost nor pass them on to already burdened clients.
"How do you increase that cost at a time when the economy is struggling?" Mr. Overton asked.
According to him, the movement of the wage rate from $50.50 per hour to $70.70 per hour in January, this year, has affected both the companies and the security guards. Since the measure took effect, the number of guards employed in the industry has fallen from 15,700 to about 13,600, Mr. Overton said.
The JSIS president said the increase in the minimum wage for security guards, combined with the impact of recent changes to the Labour Relations and Industrial Disputes Act (LRIDA), could drive many companies out of business.
The JSIS, which represents security companies, has been meeting with the Ministry of Labour, as well as union representatives to hammer out a strategy to deal with concerns of the security firms. Talks were held early last week with Minister of Labour, Dean Peart, and another meeting is scheduled to take place on June 6 to further work through the issue.
According to Anthony Irons, senior adviser in the Ministry of Labour, the discussions are at a "delicate" stage. He said, however, that some proposals were on the table for discussion.
This latest move represents an apparent softening in the attitude of Government, which weeks ago left no doubt that the amended LRIDA would require the security companies to shoulder new costs, including statutory tax deductions for security guards and overtime based on a renewed 40-hour work week.
Under amendments to the LRIDA, security guards, who have traditionally been treated as contractors, will now be dealt with as permanent employees. They will therefore be entitled to all the benefits due to employees, including vacation leave and overtime payments.
Mr. Overton said the security industry would not be able to absorb the costs associated with the changes to the labour law. "We can't without going to the market for an increase in rates," he said.
The JSIS president argued that against the background of a sluggish economy, it would also be very difficult to go to clients and ask for increased rates. In fact, he said, a number of clients had already indicated they would not be in a position to pay higher fees for security services.
Mr. Overton said the JSIS has put several proposals on the table for discussion with the Government and the unions to deal with the situation. However, he declined to give details when pressed by The Gleaner.
Meanwhile, vice-president of the National Workers Union, Vincent Morrison, who has been seeking to represent a number of security guards, last week argued that the JSIS needed to present more data on the industry before the parties could arrive at a workable arrangement.
