ECONOMIC NOTES
NEWS AND ANALYSIS FROM THE LABOR RESEARCH ASSOCIATION
http://www.LaborResearch.org
Sep. 17, 2001
As the nation comes to terms with the horrendous events that took place on
September 11, one of the areas that is falling under intense scrutiny is
airport security. What has been clear to experts for a long time is that
the private airline industry has not taken airport security seriously.
This summer LRA's Howard Padwa researched the private security industry.
Our focus was on how an industry that is supposed to protect lives and
guarantee public safety was being run like a fast food chain: low wages,
high turnover, and little training. What follows is his report, written
before the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon.
>>What's Wrong With the "Security" Industry in the U.S. (Sep 17, 2001)
By Howard Padwa
While the U.S. economy was booming in the 1990's and dot-com mania was
creating the illusions of new wealth, other parts of the low-wage economy
were experiencing high rates of growth.
One such industry that has exploded in recent years is private security.
There are an estimated one million to two million workers in some 13,000
private security companies today, and some say that there are twice as
many private security workers as police officers. The number of workers in
the industry has grown nearly 20% in the last ten years, and according to
the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it will increase another 21-35% by 2008 as
companies beef up security to allay fears of crime, vandalism, and
terrorism.
These guards, however, are not policemen. Instead, they are uniformed
watchmen, usually unarmed, who patrol airports, shopping malls, private
businesses, and college campuses. As companies downsize, they often have
their security personnel -- typically provided by third-party contractors
-- perform two jobs at once. These "guards" also double as receptionists
or customer service workers. Even the government, in efforts to cut costs,
sometimes subcontracts security in prisons and federal buildings to
private security companies.
http://laborresearch.org/dis.shtml?security.txt
Copyright © 2001, Labor Research Association
