"Company collapse threatens Sydney airport security/ union"

Wednesday, December 22, 2004

Company collapse threatens Sydney airport security/ union
The Australian Associated Press


SYDNEY, AAP - Sydney airport could be facing a major security crisis over
the holiday period after the collapse of a security sub-contracting firm
left 100 jobs in jeopardy, a union warned today. All Events Security, which
provides about 20 per cent of the security workforce to principal Sydney
Airport security contractor SNP, was taken over by administrators last
Thursday, the Airport Security Union said. "Nearly one in five airport
security workers, that's about 100 people, will likely lose their jobs
because of this," said Mark Boyd, assistant secretary of the Liquor,
Hospitality and Miscellaneous Workers Union (LHMU), which encompasses the
Airport Security Union. He said workers' entitlements could be at risk
because All Events Security guards did not have their conditions
comprehensively protected. But more important was the risk posed to airport
security by a depleted number of guards. "Qualified airport security
personnel will be extremely hard to find at this time of year," Mr Boyd
said. The LHMU has long campaigned against security arrangements at Sydney
airport which allowed the principal sub-contractor to take on secondary
sub-contractors. All Events Security staff wore SNP uniforms and did the
same work as those employed by the main contractor, which involved luggage
checks as well as other work in the sterile area, Mr Boyd said. This made it
impossible to identify who the guard on duty actually worked for, which was
a "major problem for security", because there was no guarantee secondary
sub-contractors had undergone all the necessary security checks. Mr Boyd
said any security crisis could be avoided if SNP directly employed All
Events Security guards who were properly qualified and now faced losing
their jobs due to the company's liquidation. He also called on Sydney
Airport Corporation Limited (SACL) to reassure the travelling public about
the quality of airport security guards employed at the airport. "Both SACL
and the major airlines should insist that all airport security guards are
employed directly by the firm contracted to deliver the job, so that their
backgrounds and qualifications can be fully attested if queried," Mr Boyd
said. Comment was being sought from SNP and SACL.


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