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Private security industry signs game-changing wage agreement

The private security industry employer bodies have signed a three-year wage agreement with the relevant trade unions, following a constructive and peaceful negotiation process.

This is according to the Security Association of South Africa (SASA), which is pleased to announce that together with the other employer bodies (including the South African National Security Employers Association (SANSEA) and the Congress of South African Private Security (COSAPS), it has signed a three-year wage agreement with the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (SATAWU) and 14 other industry trade unions. This agreement is subject to promulgation by the Minister of Labour, effective from 1 September 2015.

Costa Diavastos, president of SASA.

“We are pleased with the outcome of the negotiation process, that will usher in some radical changes in the security industry, and even more so because all parties have once again contributed to a constructive and amicable process, which has resulted in more than nine years of industrial peace under the Negotiation Framework Agreement,” says Costa Diavastos, president of SASA and chief negotiator, representing the employer bodies. “Our objective has at all times been to do our best to ensure that the industry will never again witness a repeat of the violent industrial strike action which we saw in 2006,” he says.

Some of the most significant aspects of the wage agreement, include:

• A 9.8% increase to the minimum wage for the lowest paid workers in the sector in the first year.

• The phasing out of the Grade D security officer over the three-year period.

• The streamlining of the demarcation of geographical areas in favour of two categories (urban and rural).

According to SASA, security workers are among the most vulnerable in the sector and this deal has made an unprecedented positive shift on employment conditions in a sector which is one of the largest entry level employers in the country.

“As one of the largest employer bodies in the industry, we do take the interests of our employees very seriously, which is why SASA has been committed to the process of eradicating industry non-compliance,” says Diavastos. “We are gratified that the unions have worked with us towards an amicable agreement and with this process now successfully concluded, we can focus our efforts on tackling those other issues impacting our industry,” he concluded.

A full copy of the industry wage agreement can be viewed on the SASA website.

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