Dear Editor,

On behalf of the security guards in Jamaica I want to say thanks to Prime Minister Andrew Holness and his Government for giving us a good increase in our minimum wage.

I want to thank the prime minister for finally acknowledging publicly that security officers are employees.

We also want to thank the prime minister for listening to my voice by announcing the increase of the minimum wage in Parliament.

I will have to also thank Opposition Leader Mark Golding and labour spokesperson Angela Brown Burke for their fight for us in Parliament.

I hope the Parliament, in a bipartisan effort, will develop a policy directive to give the Private Security Regulation Authority (PSRA) more powers to lock down security companies who still do not want to treat security officers as employees.

Our basic pay for a workweek will move from $10,500 to $14,000; that’s $3,500 more and a 33.34 per cent increase, which means security officers basic rate will move from $262.50 to $350 per hour while overall minimum wage earners receive $325 per hour.

I hope to see future details from the Minister of Labour on the laundry, canine and firearm allowances for security guards.

While security guards understand there may be a move to make the minimum wage standard for everyone, we must keep in mind that security guards work in this high risk climate, so our allowances per hour need to incentivise workers to remain or come in the industrial security industry.

We hope the PSRA, going forward, will require security companies to pay the allowances for security guards and not only the basic rate.

The security industry is seeing a shortage like many industry, but the move to make security guards employees as of April 1 and a minimum wage increase on June 1 will make Jamaicans want to work in this high-risk industry.

As well, security guards will now be less burnt out because I am sure the days of security guards working 200 hours fortnightly just to get by are over!

The current salary of a security guard at the lowest level per day is $3,721 in 12 hours. As employees, post-April 1, using the current minimum rate, it will be $4,246 in 12 hours. However, using the new minimum wage (effective June 1, 2023) should receive an estimated $5,471 in 12 hours. Plus, using the new minimum wage base rate and the old laundry allowance a security officer is likely to get $455.95 on average in 12 hours because of time and a half . This means security firms are likely to charge $656 and over per hour for an unarmed security guard going forward.

To my fellow security guards: We are loved and also hated by the public for many reasons, but please, going forward, we will have to be more professional and productive so that the sceptics will recognise the importance of private security guards in Jamaica.

I hope National Security Minister Horace Chang will listen to our cry and have a pension scheme developed for security guards.

Teddylee Gray

President

Jamaica Association for Private Security

Ocho Rios, St Ann

teddylee.gray@gmail.com