Security staff working at European airports and ports will receive higher levels of training under new standards set in conjunction with trade unions. ETUC and UNI Europa, representing security staff, have contributed to revising two European standards on the minimum criteria for the provision of security services in the aviation and maritime sectors.
The standards were published at the end of 2023 (EN 17483-2 ‘Private security services – Protection of Critical Infrastructure – Part 2: Airport and aviation security services’ and EN 17483-3 ‘Private security services – Protection of Critical Infrastructure – Part 3: Maritime and port security services’).
The standards will raise requirements for the training of private security staff above those currently set in existing EU standards and legislation. The standards were developed through negotiations with employers, manufacturers, consumers and regulators. The participation of trade unions in these standards was crucial to ensure that workers’ voices and concerns were heard and taken into account when developing the standards. Trade unions bring in shop-floor experience but also raise the need for improvements in the job.
ETUC welcomes that the standards foresee that training for supervision shall be conducted by qualified trainers and have further requirements for on-the-job training and refresher training.
ETUC and UNI Europa are currently participating in the development of additional parts of the EN 17483 series, namely the standards on private security services for the energy sector and water infrastructure. Further sector-specific standards are planned.
