Informal businesses grow due to lack of private security law
During the panel " Labor Transformation: Challenges and Opportunities for its Modernization ," the president of the Dominican Association of Security Companies ( Adesinc ), Freddy González Estrada, called on congressional authorities to urgently approve the law that seeks to regulate this sector.
"We've been waiting more than 16 years for regulations that provide a level playing field, curb abuses, and promote compliance with tax and labor obligations," said the business leader during the opening remarks of the panel held this Thursday at the Embassy Suites by Hilton hotel.
González Estrada explained that the lack of regulation has opened the door to unfair competition , where informal businesses operate without paying taxes or respecting the wages established by the National Wage Committee.
"This situation, he said, not only affects formal businesses, but also puts the security of citizens and private assets at risk," he said.
He stated that the State is losing millions in revenue, and that with the approval of the law, it could double its revenue from this concept," affirmed the president of Adesinc , highlighting that the sector contributes significantly to the Gross Domestic Product ( GDP ) and generates more than 90 million hours of surveillance and protection each year.
The panel included Senator Rafael Barón Duluc ( Cholitin ), chairman of the committee studying the Labor Code reform; Laura Peña Izquierdo, president of Copardom; and Andrés Valentín Herrera, Director General of Labor at the labor sector's governing body.
The moderation was in charge of the executive director of Adesinc , Víctor Garrido Reyes.
Contributions from private security companiesThe president of the Dominican Association of Security Companies said the sector contributed 21.705 billion pesos to the GDP last year, with an average growth of 10.8% over the last five years.
"We are a dynamic sector that represents 0.32% of GDP, but even more so, a pillar of formal employment with salaries that compete with the public sector, reaching an average of 27,075 pesos per month," explained González Estrada.
He added that 67.2% of the sector's contribution to GDP comes directly from its workforce , a figure that far exceeds the national average of 28.7%.
"These significant contributions come only from the formal sector of Private Security . If we had the Private Security Law, which we have been fighting for approval for over 16 years, unfair competition from the informal sector of Private Security would be eliminated, and the Dominican State would receive double what it is currently collecting," the executive emphasized.
- This informal sector has grown by 16.8% in the last five years, or 6% more than the regulated sector .
This is because, he adds, since they are not regulated, they do not contribute to the treasury and pay a salary below what is established by the National Salary Committee, which is why they can charge clients a rate much lower than that established by the Superintendency of Private Surveillance and Security .
About Adesinc:Adesinc is a non-profit organization that brings together the main companies in the country's formal and organized private security sector.
It was founded in January 1982 and incorporated by Decree No. 108-92, dated April 2, 1992. Its current membership is comprised of more than 80 formal companies in the sector, which provide approximately 90 million hours of surveillance and protection annually.
Adesinc brings together security companies in the areas of surveillance, valuables transportation, security consulting and research, electronic security, and security equipment distribution, among others.
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