Malaysia

Who watches the watchmen? 73 PJ security firm workers catch Covid-19 in a month

MTUC calls out industry’s apparent lack of care for public health, safety

Updated 5 years ago · Published on 01 Jul 2021 9:00AM

Who watches the watchmen? 73 PJ security firm workers catch Covid-19 in a month — Malaysian Trade Union Congress general council member A. Sivananthan says that the high case numbers reveal a lack of Covid-19 SOP compliance by private security firms. – Pixabay pic, July 1, 2021

by Arjun Mohanakrishnan

KUALA LUMPUR – It is ironic that a security company that makes money by keeping their clients safe has not guarded its own personnel from being infected by Covid-19.

In the short span of less than a month, a security company based in Petaling Jaya had 73 of its staff test positive for the dreaded virus.

A document obtained by The Vibes showed that at least 61 of the company’s workers had received positive test results from a clinic based in the Klang Valley.

Many who tested positive were also understood to be security personnel dealing with the replenishment of money at ATM machines.

Based on the document, the 73 staff members tested positive between May 15 to June 12.

Further checks on MySejahtera revealed that within 1km of the security company’s headquarters in Petaling Jaya, 213 Covid-19 infections were reported over the past two weeks.

Malaysian Trade Union Congress general council member A. Sivananthan asserted that such numbers reveal the lack of compliance to Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs) by security companies.

Malaysian Trade Union Congress general council member A. Sivananthan says it is crucial for security staff members to have full personal protective equipment when conducting their duties. – Lampu & Mentols Blog pic, July 1, 2021

“These security guards are going into places where the public frequent, such as near ATM machines.

“Further on their journey, they are made to sit in cramped armoured vans without any personal protective equipment (PPE),” Sivananthan told The Vibes.

He added that it is crucial for such staff members to have full PPE kits when conducting their duties.

Additionally, Sivananthan also pointed out that the security company’s Kuala Terengganu branch was shut down for two weeks by the state Health Department from June 22 to July 7.

“These companies have to start complying with the SOPs set by the National Security Council. If not, their staff will just keep getting sick.

“I urge the authorities and government to ramp up their monitoring over such companies to ensure the virus does not spread among workers, which would then result in a spread towards the public,” Sivananthan said.

The Vibes has made attempts to contact and obtain an explanation from the security company over the document revealing 73 staff members testing positive, and has yet to receive a reply. – The Vibes, July 1, 2021