Fix for illegal bouncers Bar tackles training gap after a year of police discretion
Many of Nelson’s bar security staff have been working illegally for the past year - but that’s about to change.
Nelson Police Senior Sergeant John Price confirmed on Thursday that police were aware local bars employed door staff who were not licensed security guards but said a crackdown would put the public’s safety at risk.
By law, security guards must pass their Certificate of Approval (COA) to work in the industry. The qualification is administered by the Ministry of Justice and includes training on conflict resolution and a criminal record check.
Convicted criminals cannot gain a COA. Police had not heard any concerns about convicted criminals working in security but said the ministry was responsible for background checks.
Price said less doormen would mean ‘‘lower levels of guardianship’’ around town and a greater likelihood that minors and intoxicated people could enter bars undeterred.
The Department of Internal Affairs can fine unlicensed individuals up to $40,000 or a security company up to $60,000, or exclude them from the industry, but only investigates when complaints were made. Its general manager of regulatory services Raj Krishnan said no complaints had been made for Nelson’s CBD.
Hospitality New Zealand Nelson branch president and Little Rock Bar owner Ron Taylor said the difficulty getting certified tutors from bigger centres to visit Nelson lead to a shortage of qualified staff.
‘‘The police have been really good working with us and have allowed set staff on the door that have been cleared by them but not licensed.
‘‘I got so frustrated that we couldn’t get them trained when we needed to. The police wanted it, and it was probably frustrating for them as well, but we couldn’t do anything.’’
He said the New Zealand Secur- ity Association (NZSA) would not send a tutor to Nelson unless at least 10 guards needed certification.
NZSA chief executive Gary Morrison confirmed that threshold was normal but said the association had ‘‘no record’’ of any training issues in Nelson.
‘‘We recognise sometimes it’s difficult for smaller centres to get someone in for training. Certainly if there was demand there we would be very keen to facilitate that and make it as financially viable as possible.’’
Taylor and Little Rock’s head of security Nemo Nepe have developed their own training course for doormen across Nelson, Marlborough and the West Coast. Training sessions for as few as three guards would start within the coming weeks, they said.
The programme, believed to be the first regional effort towards standardising bar security, uses Nepe’s 30 years’ experience in the industry to provide more in-depth training around fines and intoxication.
Taylor said the COA focussed mostly on crowd control and a tailored course for bar security in Nelson would ‘‘bring Bridge St together’’.
‘‘If security are all trained and trained the same way we will have a much safer street.’’
However he said regions should not be left to develop their own training programmes.
‘‘This should never have happened. You take somewhere like the West Coast how do you get them trained?’’