Brian Sims
Editor
Brian Sims
Editor
THE SECURITY Industry Authority (SIA) has published a ‘snapshot’ profile of the door supervision sector. The report looks at employment issues in the sector, drawing on findings from recent surveys and past research conducted by the organisation. It also makes use of data from the SIA’s licensing system.
On that note, data from the SIA’s licensing system shows that the number of door supervisor licences and licence applications is currently at its highest level across the last decade.
Responses to surveys undertaken by the SIA suggest that some companies within the sector have found it difficult to recruit and retain door supervisors.
Responses indicated that the main barriers to retention are that some door supervisors have found alternative work during the pandemic and are reluctant to return to the sector and also that some individuals who have previously worked as door supervisors are reluctant to leave furlough pay.
Further, the responses received to SIA surveys also indicate that barriers to recruitment and retention are low pay, unsociable hours, job insecurity, high levels of physical and verbal abuse, training costs and the licence application fee (either for an initial application or a renewal).
Telephone surveys conducted in 2021 indicate that pay rates are usually around £10-£12 per hour. This is roughly the same as recorded in the research the SIA conducted in 2006. Some responses indicated that poor employment practices still exist and that some door supervisors are still being paid cash in hand.
The SIA licence fee has been recently reduced back to its original (ie 2004) level of £190. Taking inflation into account, the licence application fee is now cheaper in real terms than it was in 2004. If the licence application fee had increased each year in line with inflation it would now be £298.
Open source research conducted by the SIA this year has indicated that the cost of the door supervisor licence-linked training course is generally somewhere between £200 and £250. This year, the SIA has introduced a requirement for First Aid training, of course, which has added around £50 to the cost of training.
Survey responses have indicated that some companies charge staff for their uniform (if required) and relevant insurance.
*The full findings and data from this research can be found in the six-page report online here
**This report is the first in a series of private security industry profiles undertaken by the SIA. Further sector profiles will be published in due course
