How Much Does a Security Guard Get Paid?
How Much Does a Security Guard Get Paid?
We’ve all seen them; guarding the door at the BWS, giving directions at the hotel concierge desk, guiding people at Suncorp Stadium.
But have you ever found yourself wondering how much does a security guard get paid? How do you get into that kind of job? Where can you work as a security guard?
Well don’t worry we’re here to answer all those questions.
How much does a security guard get paid?
How much a security guard gets paid depends on what kind of job they do, what kind of experience they have and what level they are working at. It can also depend whether you’re being paid under the award or on an enterprise bargaining agreement.
What is an enterprise bargaining agreement?
An enterprise bargaining agreement is a negotiated agreement entered into by Fair Work and a company that enables the company to pay their employees a flat rate that’s fair by the standards of Fair work.
Generally, the base rate will be slightly above the award rate to balance out the difference between the award base rate and higher award rates for night and weekend work.
What is the security industry award rate?
The security industry is governed by the Security Services Industry Award MA00016. Under this award security guards are paid either as a full time / permanent part-time or casual employees.
The base hourly rate as a level one security guard employed either full time or permanent part-time is $22.28 for daytime work and goes up to $44.56 for Sunday work.
And the base hourly rate as a level one security guard employed as a casual employee is $27.85 for daytime work and goes up to $50.13 for Sunday work.
When you first start out you’d likely be employed as a level one security guard under the award however there are five levels on the award, so if you worked your way up here’s what you could earn as a security guard paid at a level five.
The base hourly rate for a level five security guard employed full-time or permanent part-time is $24.47 for daytime work and goes up to $48.94 for Sunday work.
And the base hourly rate for a level five security guard employed as a casual is $30.59 for daytime work and goes up to $55.06 for Sunday work.
Do you have to study to become a security guard?
All security guards need to have completed the CPP20218 Certificate II in Security Operations. This an eight-day face to face workshop in which our trainers will go through all aspects of the security industry including reporting, conflict resolution, patrolling, work, health and safety, emergency procedures, and first aid.
How much does it cost to become a security guard?
The Certificate II in Security Operations costs $1500 but most people are able to access some funding. This funding is called Certificate 3 Guarantee funding.
You can apply for this funding if you are an Australian citizen or permanent resident or on the path to residency with the necessary working visas and if you have not studied a certificate 3 or higher before.
If you’re successful in gaining this funding, you’ll only have to pay a small student co-contribution fee of either $14 or $42 depending on whether you hold current concession card. Prices correct at time of publication. You can learn more about the Certificate 3 Guarantee funding here.
The licensing
After you’ve completed the Certificate II in Security Operations you’ll need to complete the application to get your unarmed security guard license through the Office of Fair Trading. This application includes the police check and finger printing and costs around $530 at the time of publication. It can take up to 2 months for the application to be processed and once you’ve received your licence you can apply for security guard roles.
Getting work
The security industry is currently booming in Australia. There is more work than there are workers so it’s a very stable career path with opportunities in multiple different sectors.
At ASSET, we care about getting our students matched up with roles that will suit them which is why we have our employer connections program.
This program is entirely free to our graduates and you can opt in to take part. It includes pre-employment coaching, resume reviewing, mock interviews, group interviews, networking events and a referral program with our industry partners.
Where can you work as a security guard?
The security industry is very broad, because almost every sector requires some sort of security support. As a security guard you could work at a hospital, in the library, at large scale events doing crowd control, as a hotel concierge, at a shopping centre, at a government building, doing roving patrol, in control room monitoring CCTV, at a gate house in logistic and transport, in the mines, at the airport or at commercial buildings and these are just some of the roles available in the industry.
What else can you do in Security?
In an industry as varied as security, there are multiple options for career progression and the earning potential as you climb the ladder is substantial. Once you’ve been working as a guard for a while you can become a team leader, then a manager and even a national manager. The next step once you’ve been the industry a while and ready to progress in your career is to take the Certificate IV in Security Management.
How do you get started
If you’re thinking about an exciting career in security the first step is attend one of our free information sessions. In these sessions our team will take you through everything you need to know about starting out in the security industry.
They go through how the course works, what you’ll study, how the funding works and how to apply, what kinds of jobs you can do and what we can do to support you on your path to employment through our employer connections programs.
We run these sessions every week at each at our Logan, Gold Coast and North Lakes campuses. You can book in for one here, or you can have a chat with one of our friendly course advisors by contacting us.