The Association of Private Security Owners of South Africa (TAPSOSA) told ProtectionWeb various government departments, municipalities, and parastatals have not paid most of the affected security companies for their services.

According to TAPSOSA’s spokesperson Sindisiwa Changuion, one of the organisation’s members is owed R18-million by an organ of the state.

“Almost 70% of the more than 11000 companies that operate in the guarding sector are affected by non-payment for their services, with an estimated loss of more than half a billion.”

TAPSOSA has launched a national campaign to proactively engage and expose private security consumers “who have no regard for the well-being of these companies and their employees.”

“Our objective is to bring to light the adverse effect of such treatment which also exacerbates issues of non-compliance in the private security industry. As a representative of marginalized employers, we cannot afford to sit back and not intervene on this issue as security businesses’ sustainability is threatened,” said Changuion.

The campaign is in response to the resolutions of the Private Security Industry Summit held in December last year.

“It became a glaring indication and a consensus from the summit that despite the issues discussed, in particular the regulation of pricing in the industry, most private security employers are increasingly frustrated by private security consumers who do not honor the payment of their invoices on agreed payment terms.”

“To date, most of these affected businesses had to either shut their doors or incur insurmountable debt just to stay afloat and keep their business operational. In this regard, TAPSOSA on behalf of its member companies intends to engage with the clients whom our members have had challenges with regarding the payment of their invoices which has spun over six months,” said Changuion.

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Health Approach Solutions NPC founder Thabiso Nzama started a WhatsApp group in 2020 that led to the creation of Security Cares – South Africa, a national programme aimed at counselling security officers.

“When security officers were declared essential workers during the Covid-19 pandemic, I started a WhatsApp group, offering health tips and support to the officers.”

“We have now started this initiative on a full-time basis. This programme is the first of its kind and follows a well-structured and coordinated partnership approach. Although we already have security officers in this program, we want to make it more structured, which is why we are inviting security companies to sign up for partnership,” he said.

Nzama, now a human resources practitioner and neuroscience coach, said the role and responsibilities of security officers were “huge” and often taken for granted.

“The responsibilities of security officers are often overlooked despite being enormous. Having worked as a security guard myself, I understand how these professionals are treated by our society and the risks and challenges they face in their workplaces.”

“Unfortunately, little is being done to support their health and well-being. It is unfair to expect security officers to be proactive and observant at work while their mental health is not being looked after. Therefore, there is a need for change in the policies to implement mental health support in the sector,” he said.

In addition, security guards may suffer from psychological trauma as a result of the demands and pressures associated with their job.

“When criminals attempt to break in and steal, the first line of defence are the officers. However, they are often targeted by criminals and many of them lack the necessary resources to defend themselves, making them even more vulnerable. Some officers are unable to take their medications for chronic diseases due to their off days not coinciding with their health facility visits. It’s a traumatic experience to wake up every day not knowing what might happen to your life. Unfortunately, some security firms are not equipped to deal with these traumatic experiences and hiring an external practitioner to assist is often a significant barrier.”

Nzama has urged security companies to support the initiative.

“By collaborating, we can enhance the mental health of security officers, benefiting the sector,” he said.

The first phase of the programme is expected to commence soon in Gauteng.

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