Trish McConnell: Private Security Personnel Licensing Authority Update

Trish McConnell:

Private Security Personnel Licensing Authority Update

In a recent NZSA and ASIS NZ Chapter webinar, the PSPLA Chair talked security licensing, COVID, omicron, how the PSPLA has been responding to the challenges of now - and looking to the challenges of the future.

Trish McConnell heads the Private Security Personnel Licensing Authority and the Licensing Authority of Secondhand Dealers and Pawnbrokers. She was previously chair of the Weathertight Homes Tribunal and the Tenancy Tribunal. Trish has also worked as a Barrister specialising in alternative disputes resolution and as a Lawyer, both in private legal practice and with Community Law Centres.

In the 21 February webinar, PSPLA Chair Trish McConnell discussed the work of the Authority, the issues that have arisen during COVID lock downs and what is being done to address them. It was also an opportunity to gain tips and advice on navigating the PSPLA application, objection and emergency appointment processes.

Trish is an Australasian specialist, speaker and author on a wide range of tribunal issues. She is also the chair of the Licensing Authority of Secondhand Dealers and Pawnbrokers and has previously chaired the Weathertight Homes Tribunal and the Tenancy Tribunal.

The following is an abridged transcript of the first half of her talk. The second half will be covered in the June issue of NZSM:

Effectively, the PSPLA is both a registration board and a disciplinary body. We are given the authority to do what we do by the Private Security Personnel and Private Investigators Act and the supporting regulations made under that Act, and it somewhat conscribes what we can do as well. So we’re restricted in somethings we can do and in making some changes, but there are other things it gives us the power to do.

Under the Act, our stated purpose is to ensure people offering security and investigation services for hire are suitably qualified to carry out their work, and to not behave in ways that are contrary to the public interest.

Most of the work of the PSPLA is around processing and making decisions on applications for Certificates of Approval (CoAs) and licences, and that includes the objections that the Police make, and dealing with applications for temporary certificate, dealing with emergency appointments, and more recently issuing exemptions in certain circumstances.

We also deal with complaints against licence and certificate holders, we maintain the registers of licence and certificate holders, and we have a role in liaising with people from the security industry and stakeholders (and an educational role, such as this webinar), and with the Police.

As all of you working in the security industry know, the onset of COVID, lockdowns, levels and traffic light settings has significantly increased and complicated your work and in turn our work. With the initial lockdown, things were relatively quiet, but since then things have been very busy.

In terms of applications for CoAs, licences and renewals, the 2020 year was our busiest year on record apart from the first year that the PSPLA was

set up, and the 2021 calendar year was even busier – we handled over 11,000 applications – and almost 12,000 last year.

Even prior to COVID happening it was identified that there was going to be a shortage of security staff in New Zealand, and particularly in the Auckland area. At that stage, this identification was made because of the big events – conferences and sporting events – that were scheduled. I remember Gary [Morrison] telling me two and a half years ago that we were probably 2-3,000 people short in relation to security personnel in New Zealand for ongoing needs.

Those events haven’t happened, but what’s happened is that COVID has occurred. This has impacted particularly in the classes of crowd controller, property guard and personnel guard.

In terms of CoAs, it’s increased [demand] significantly in the past two years – and that’s primarily because of COVID. The number of temporary CoAs has increased substantially as well, and we’ve also had a big increase in the number of objections and complaints filed.

In terms of objections, part of it’s been caused by the fact that there’s been more applications filed, but I think more significantly is the fact [that the proportion of objections has increased]. I suspect that you are often recruiting staff that are more marginal and more likely to fail criminal history checks, and the Police object to them.

The number of objections has more than doubled since 2019. I think the other reason why objections have increased is because together with the Complaints Investigations and Prosecutions Unit which is based in the Department of Internal Affairs, we do investigations from time to time into people who are working without certificates or licences.

We’ve [also] done quite a bit of work with Police in terms of what’s required and what they need to do in terms of objections and complaints, because only the Police have the right to object to certificates. Those two combined things have increased the level of objections.

Complaints have also increased significantly. Primarily, it’s complaints from members of the public that have increased. The other thing that has increased is prosecutions against people working without certificates and licences. There’s been three or four in 2019 that went through to hearing and conviction, and there’s about five in process at the moment.

As well as a substantially increased workload, the other challenges we’ve faced both within the security industry and within the PSPLA is that the lockdowns have reduced staff numbers available to us, although our staff were some of the few who continued to work onsite during the first lockdown.

As you are aware, there was an increase in the need for security guards on an urgent basis, and that has continued on through different levels. Changes in settings and the introduction of MIQ has meant that new security guards have needed to be employed urgently.

Combined with that, at least during the initial lockdown, Post Shops closed – and then again during the extended lockdown in Auckland towards the end of last year. With Post Shops closing, badges couldn’t be picked up. That created issues that required workarounds.

During the first few lockdowns, access to training was reduced. While there were more online options available, they couldn’t always be accessed by some people. Combined with that, we had issues of Police being reassigned from doing licensing work to working in other areas and then filing objections very late.

I issued protocols within the Ministry of Justice prior to the initial lockdown, and had PSPLA recognised as an essential service during lockdowns to ensure that case managers could continue to operate and we could continue to do the essential work, which we prioritised at that time as issuing new certificates, issuing temporary certificates of approval,

issuing emergency appointments and extensions and getting badges printed and out to people.

We managed to do that throughout the lockdowns, although there were delays with getting badges out. What we did at that stage was get all id badges sent into the PSPLA offices from the printers, and get them sent back in from the Post Shops around the country who had been holding onto them there while they were locked down, and then we posted them out to people. Unfortunately, not all people’s addresses were current, but we got through that.

I also accepted lockdowns and changing levels as reasons for emergency appointments, so we had a substantial increase in numbers of emergency appointments. Last year at one stage during a lockdown we processing 20 or more emergency appointments a day.

I also introduced an exemptions certificate that exempted people from wearing their ids until they received their official id, especially during the first lockdown when it took some time to get badges printed and sent out. We did that so people could start working before they got their badges – and not have to wait for sometimes three or four weeks.

The other thing that was allowed during the initial lockdowns was temporary Certificates of Approval if people weren’t able to get their training done due to lockdowns.

We have continued on with some of the changes that were introduced during the initial lockdowns. One of those is that CoAs and badges are no longer being delivered to Post Shops but are being posted out directly from the printers.

At the moment we’re still in the trial stages of that, but since last December all badges have been posted out by the printers. The contract we have with the printers is that they should be posted out within 48 hours of being notified that the badge has been approved.

With temporary CoAs, the application will come in to the Authority and is automatically sent off for a criminal history check and police check. The day following the application being received the criminal history check comes back and if it’s passed the temporary CoA will be issued. It will then go off to the printers, the printers will print the badge and then two days later it gets posted out.

In theory, it’s meant to arrive within three days of it hitting the post. I know this isn’t always happening. Before, it was taking two to three weeks from CoA approval to pick-up from the local post office. Now it is usually three days from when application is filed to when it is put in the post.

Other changes are being made to formalise that process. Changes to the [application] form will allow two email addresses [to be listed] in the application forms so that the applicant can have their personal email address for communication that needs to go to

them directly, and also their employer’s email address – if you as employers or managers are filing applications on behalf of people and you’re wanting to get the receipts back (if you’re making the payments and you’re wanting to get confirmation of whether things have been approved).

We’re changing the forms to allow two email addresses so that we can notify employers that are filing on behalf of new security guards, and we’re also including a section on the forms so that the applicant can nominate the address to which the badges are to be sent. So, in some cases, it may be preferable for badges to be sent to the security company who is going to engage the security guard rather than to a home address.

The other change that has recently been made is that the administration of the PSPLA has been centralised into one central team rather than spread across different parts of the Ministry.

We had for some time recognised that there were things falling though the crack between the central processing unit that dealt with the initial applications and PSPLA case managers who processed them. Putting it all into one centralised team will mean that it will be less likely that applications will fall though the gaps. It’s also less likely that there will be delays because people will be aware of what’s happening, and the same processes will be followed. This should give a better service to all of you who are dealing with the PSPLA on a regular basis.

Of course, omicron coming along has been upsetting this with the need to back up for staff isolating, etc.

In terms of omicron, you will be having significant demand for new staff because of new work created by the onset of omicron but also because staff members are having to isolate with no notice.

The same thing is potentially happening at the PSPLA, and so we’ve had to future proof what we’re going to do if one of our staff tests positive – how we’re going to continue to operate, what priority work will get done and who is going to do it.

One of the ways of doing this is working in two teams so that some people can work from home and some can work at the office, so that you’ve only ever got one team that’s having to self-isolate.

We’ve also got access to IT so that people can work from home. Most people can continue to case manage if they have a computer and access to the Justice system. We are hoping we will be able to continue to provide services more or less as normal in terms of processing applications for certificates and licences and dealing with the other work that comes in on a regular basis.

If there are significant issues because of lack of availability of workers, I will be prioritising priority work to ensure that that gets done, and through the NZSA letting people know – and placing protocols on the website – if there are significant changes.

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