During his 12-hour shift, Adem complained about two things: the heat, and his pay. He watched over a parking lot from a simple glass booth without air conditioning, and over the course of an hour he talked with other people twice. Both times, a well-dressed man came to his booth to ask that he pay close attention to a certain car — an automobile that easily stood out among the Volkswagens in the cramped parking lot. Each left a tip afterward, which Adem swept off the counter before he went back to sitting in silence.
He said it is a common occurrence but it still “isn’t enough.” His salary is 220 euros a month, the only income to support his wife and three children. (He worried that he would be fired for talking about the job, so his real name is not given in this story.)
“My salary is very low, though. It isn’t really enough to support my family, and in two months I don’t know what will happen to me. I may not have my contract renewed,” he said.
His fears are not unfounded. He’s been on the job for three months, and expected to work for two more, but there is no guarantee his job will continue. Without a college education or special qualifications, the only work he could find was with the private security service. The firm he works for doesn’t require anything beyond a high school diploma, which Adem has, but also didn’t ask that Adem have firearm training and doesn’t plan to provide it.
“I don’t need a gun to watch cars. It’s a good job to have, and management is fine,” he emphasized.
Adem is one of an estimated 6,000 security guards registered in Kosovo, although some think that estimate is low, especially since many state agencies are now employing guards from private firms. According to the Kosovo Police website, there are 9,000 police officers in Kosovo. But they are needed for other duties. Adem is part of the growing private security sector. A report by the Kosovar Center for Security Studies (KCSS) estimated that there were 3,750 security guards at in 2008, and the number has nearly doubled over the last seven years. Unofficial estimates are higher.
“You can approximate and say there are 7,000; 10,000; maybe even 12,000 because there are a lot of businesses who want their own guards,” said Mentor Vrajolli, a senior researcher with KCSS, “One of the reasons is that they want to have someone who they trust.”
This growth hasn’t come without issues, however. The Law on Private Security Services was passed in 2011 to regulate some parts of the industry by setting up a division in the Ministry of Internal Affairs to provide oversight. But it does not keep its own figures on the number of security guards in the country.
The law limits the activities a private security company could operate to services such as property protection or basic security, alarm monitoring, cash-in-transit operations, close protection body guarding, and dog security. About 95 percent of all private security activities are property protection, both private and public. However, this law may not go far enough in pressuring firms to provide better training and pay.
“The salaries in private security services in Kosovo are very low. Most private security companies, in most positions, offer either the minimal salary or lower than that,” said Vrajolli.
This is despite the fact that security guards often witness crime before policemen can intervene. A reason for this may be an uncompetitive market. Besa Security, a private security firm that operates in Albania, Kosovo and Serbia, claims it is still undercut by other firms.
“The basic salary is 130 euros for people that are under 35 and above 35 is 170 euros, minimum. But this is a burden for us, because maybe this is why we are not getting many tenders,” said Granit Hasani,
Director for Besa Security. Besa pays its guards an average salary of 220 euros. “We send offers and the cheapest wins. So that’s why I’m saying we are not very competitive in the low prices.”
Vrajolli offered another theory on why guards wages are low. “There are some private security companies who have connections with institutions, who offer the lowest price.”
He said the price of these contracts is too low for the firms to pay their guards minimum wage, and they resort to paying even less. This is problematic as the biggest employer of private security services is the state itself.
“I think that the main problem in the private security sector right now is the state,” said Vrajolli.
The signing of these contracts is against the labor rights afforded to any employees, he claimed. The government’s Division for Private Security declined to comment on the matter, saying that such an issue was under the duties of the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare.
For most guards, there isn’t a sense of danger on the job. But for Bekim Bllaca, a guard who actually goes on patrol, there is still the threat. He’s responsible for responding to a storefront when the alarm is triggered, and is often the first one on the scene— before even the police.
“It would worry me if someone broke in with a gun, and I’m there. I don’t carry a gun. But it’s not our job. We just report. But it does worry me, if I respond to an alarm and a guy with a gun is there. Then what?” said Bekim.
The standard procedure for guards is to call the police whenever a crime is witnessed. This is required of all private security servicers operating in Kosovo. Armed intervention isn’t permitted for basic security guards. As per the Law on Private Security services, the only types of services that security firms can provide with armed guards are defined as close protection services, such as body guarding, and cash-in-transit protection, such as protecting armored cars for banks. Basic services are defined as property protection, public and private.
When asked for comment, a Kosovo police spokesman deferred to the Division for Private Security Services.
“Each employee of the security company has to inform the police immediately of any actions that are out of normal….It’s a legal obligation that each employee has to do in order to prevent any crime,” said Agron Ratkoceri, head of the Division.
The management of Besa Security asserted that the legal obligation isn’t enough.
“I can say we need better cooperation. Why? Because we are not meeting with police at least once per year, and letting them hear our suggestions. For example, what territory in
Prishtina is more risky? Maybe give a suggestion to add some police patrols somewhere. It’s very important to at least meet and hear what we have to say,” said Granit Hasani.
Vrajolli said police often “ignore” the security guards and crime scene information they could provide.
“They have to use some information,” he explained. “They found out that some private security companies were installed near the crime scene and they have to use that. But they should use it more frequently. The police can access their information, but the police simply see them as rivals, not so much as partners.”
Ratkoceri, of the Division of Private Security Services, acknowledged that cooperation could be deeper, and mentioned a step toward increasing the communication between private security guards and the police.
“Maybe they can have a direct line. That sort of cooperation between private security companies and the police itself,” said Ratkoceri.
Regardless of the problems, Bekim said there’s no real peril in being a security guard. Even if it were more dangerous, he would still work as one. And despite also being paid 230 euros a month, he said he is lucky.
“Because it’s a job. What else is there? I need a job.”
(Drake Long is a reporting intern at KosovaLive this summer in collaboration with Miami University in the United States)
