Minister Approves Security Employment Regulation Order (ERO)

Damien English TD, Minister of State for Business, Employment and Retail has today accepted a proposal for an Employment Regulation Order for the Security Industry. The Order will commence on Monday, 29th August 2022, providing a new minimum rate of pay of €12.50 per hour. The Order also provides for a second increase to a minimum of €12.90 per hour from the 1st February 2023.

The Irish Security Industry Association (ISIA) was pleased to be in a position to share this news with its members today.  Members of the ISIA have been waiting for the implementation of this ERO which will ensure improved rates of pay, terms, and conditions for its employees. Lorraine O’Neill, President of the ISIA, pointed out that ‘security staff in our member companies and the industry as a whole are long overdue this increase and it is a great relief to know that all of our people will now benefit from an increase in pay. I also wish to thank the representative of the ISIA who sits on the Joint Labour Committee (JLC) ensuring that better conditions are agreed upon for the people who support our industry. On behalf of the membership, I would also like to extend our thanks to Gill O’Riordan, Chair of the ISIA Guarding Division and Vice President, who worked tirelessly to represent the views of the members in an attempt to see this ERO approved’.

Minister English said, ‘I am pleased to approve this Employment Regulation Order which will commence on 29 August 2022.

I would like to thank the members of the Joint Labour Committee and those interested parties who submitted submissions as part of the public consultation for their contributions to this process. The Security Industry Joint Labour Committee is a good example of how effective the reformed Joint Labour Committee system can be when representatives of employees and employers voluntarily negotiate together to identify a mutually beneficial agreement.

I believe that for workers, the advantage of Joint Labour Committees is that they see fair secure terms and conditions such as wage rates, sick pay etc. agreed and, for some employers, the advantage of the system, based as it is on the principle of self-governance, means that they can agree and set minimum pay and conditions, agree on work practices which are custom-made to their industry’.