Host boroughs to provide 40 per cent of security staff
London’s six Olympic host boroughs look set to provide more than 40 per cent of security staff for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, its official security provider reveals.
G4S has released figures revealing that between them, the six Olympic boroughs have more than 10,500 candidates currently undergoing security screening and training.
G4S’s London 2012 managing director, Mark Hamilton, who is also one of the Channel 4 News Jobs Ambassadors has claimed that the recruitment programme will have a lasting impact on those who are hired.
“The fact that we have so many new employees isn’t just good news for the Games, it is good news for London and Britain, particularly when you consider the issue of youth unemployment.”
Newham is leading the race, with nearly 3,500 local residents going through screening and training. Tower Hamlets is in second position, closely followed by Redbridge with 1,575 candidates.
Assuming most candidates pass the necessary checks, that means that at least 40 per cent of the G4S Olympic workforce will be from the six ‘host’ boroughs.
On the home straight: Olympic boroughs contribution to security recruitment
Barking and Dagenham, 1,353
Greenwich, 1,396
Hackney, 1,296
Newham, 3,473
Tower Hamlets, 1,630
Waltham Forest, 1,550
Total from Olympic Boroughs, 10,698
Total recruits, 23,700
How the Olympic boroughs fared:
As the official security provider, G4S has been asked by the Games organisers LOCOG, to provide 10,400 security staff for the Games, and to train and manage the bulk of the 23,700 strong security workforce.
A former secondary school in Newham has been converted by G4S into a training and recruitment centre, with up to 1,500 recruits passing through its doors every week.
Mr Hamilton said: “It was always our intention to mobilise a large part of our workforce from the six boroughs around the Olympic Park in East London.
The company has also confirmed that more than 105,000 people have applied for positions at the various Olympic venues, and that more than 3,800 have already been deployed, either working on the Olympic Park itself in Stratford, or across the country in other venues.
“I am also thrilled that so many have come forward to seek work; they have a very responsible, and I hope rewarding, part to play in the sporting extravaganza,” added Mr Hamilton.
“The scale of our operation is so big that it will have a massive positive impact on jobs. The people who we are recruiting are gaining precious work experience but also significant volumes of training that will stand them in good stead for a permanent job once the Olympics is over, either inside G4S or in the wider jobs market.
‘Enduring legacy’
“This will be a practical, enduring and broad legacy of the London Games.”
Among the successful candidates to start working before the Games begin is Clifford Farrell of Hackney. Once an aspiring marathon runner in Montserrat, former firefighter Clifford left the island with his family in 1999 to pursue a better life in Britain after volcanic eruptions destroyed its capital.
Clifford, who will work as a security operational supervisor, said: “It means so much to me and my family to be a part of the Olympic and Paralympic Games in London. I was an athlete myself in my home country in the West Indies and sport remains a passion of mine. Working for G4S has given me the opportunity to meet people from different cultures and backgrounds and play a really important role in this historical event.”
Although the bulk of roles will be temporary, ending after the Paralympics in September, thousands of people will have gained Security Industry Authority qualifications and licences on top of the unique experience of working in the Games, which will be valuable for their future careers.
Sir Robin Wales, Mayor of Newham, said: “We have always said the true prize from the 2012 Games are jobs for local people and a lasting economic legacy.
“The Olympics has been a catalyst for regeneration and inward investment and we have made the most of this opportunity.
“With support from Workplace, Newham’s employment service, and our partnership with G4S, our residents have secured many more Olympic job offers than any of the host boroughs.”
