The strike of El Prat, tip of the iceberg of the situation of the vigilance

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• By  elEconomista.es ,  www.eleconomista.es
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• September 17th, 2017
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The conflict of the watchmen of the airport of El Prat is "the tip of the iceberg" of the reality of a sector with salaries of 1.000 euros, shifts of 12 hours and many "pirate companies". It has served to give visibility to their claims and to embark on the search for a global solution.

The trade unions consider that this conflict, similar to others, is to show that the private security sector has to be dignified because these professionals work together with security forces in sensitive places, something moment of alert 4 antiterrorist reinforced after the attacks of Catalonia.

In Spain there are about 80,000 active security guards working in private places, especially in public administrations, in many cases in "critical" infrastructures such as airports or nuclear power stations, according to Efe from the majority unions (UGT, CCOO and USE) and from the Social Platform for the Defense of the Rights of Private Security Workers, which integrates five others.

They all agree that it is precisely in the public administrations that most are hired "pirate companies" that use the labor reform of 2012 to get rid of the collective agreement and pay up to 300 euros less per month to professionals who already charge on average, without antiquity and complements, about 1,000.

"It's like a pure and hard auction, it's the cheapest," summarizes UGT Secretary of Security Sector Sergio Picallo, who understands that "we have to change the trend and move from chaos and uncontrol to coordination and professionalization of the sector "and" not allow the Administration to be the main agent of precarization ".

To channel this change Picallo relies on the work of the newly created working group that will address the situation of the sector in public infrastructures, involving four ministries, employers and UGT and CCOO.

He also hoped that, at the same time, the blocked negotiation of the collective agreement would proceed, with a better disposition of the employers. If not, there will be "generalized" mobilizations.

The demands of the sector are cyclical and just before the summer were revealed in the street with concentrations on 28 June in the main cities involving thousands of vigilantes who demanded a fair agreement, against the proposal "regressive and inadmissible "that had made the bosses at the negotiating table.

There trade unions already warned of the importance of the work of the vigilantes in collaboration with the security forces, especially at a time of level 4 of antiterrorist alert in which any day could be an attack, as it finally happened in August.

And in July erupted the conflict of the workers of Eulen in the Prat, that still continues.

This case has brought to the surface others with different notices of protests, including a strike in the company Marsegur, one of the most criticized, for 25 and 26 September organized by UGT, CCOO and USO.

There was also an indefinite strike throughout the sector on 23 and 24 September, followed by strikes by the Social Platform for the Defense of Private Security Workers, which calls for a 10% wage increase and a commitment to "no retreat" ". 

And a "great concentration" on the 27th in Madrid by two minority groups who want to strike throughout the sector.

The three major unions do not support these two calls for a generic strike because they believe that now is the time to negotiate, although they warn that if there is no progress in the coming weeks we will live "a hot autumn."

"At the meeting of the working group with the government there were very good words, but we see it with caution because we want real proposals, with a budget to raise wages and improve rights," warns from Comisiones Obreras Daniel Barragan, who warns that while that group advances they are not going to stop mobilizing for a fair deal.

The secretary general of Private Security of USO, Basilio Alberto Febles, quantifies in 20,000 professionals working for companies with conditions inferior to those of the collective agreement, 90% of them in public administrations, and also urges a "dignification" that this union has been demanding for years.

It warns that, in addition to the bad conditions, these companies usually end up in creditors' competition and leave Social Security debts, as has happened with Esabe, with 28 million, Falcon with 13 or Security Integral Canaria, with 21 million, according to notes .

Although it seems that "each one is going to air," both the majority representatives as the small groups as the defense watchers expect that "this time if you get, once and for all, to improve the sector."

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