Even in supermarkets there are already thousands of security guards as brutality increases

Just twenty years ago, you could hardly imagine security guards in discount stores, hospitals or escorting the conductor on the train. However, this is everyday life now. More and more companies are receiving support from security personnel.

There are 17,311 employees in the security sector across Austria. Increasing trend! In 2014 there were 14,257 employees. With the increased need for security, the pressure on security personnel also increases. There are now multi-day courses for monitors who also work in hospitals. In the hospitals of the Vienna Health Association, between three and ten security officers are present at each location 24 hours a day.

“Given the increasing demands, we have expanded the number of employees in recent years,” says a spokeswoman. They are mainly used if there is a violation of the house rules, for example if there are homeless people in the building, and in the outpatient clinics, for example if drunk patients are admitted or if there are threats and damage to property.

There are 167 permanent security officers working for ÖBB in Vienna and 20 on the trains. “In recent years, the willingness of individuals to enter into conflicts has increased slightly,” it is also said here. There are therefore regular coordination rounds with the police in which event-related measures are discussed.

The 330-strong security staff of the Wiener Linien is regularly confronted with attacks (168 in 2023). The company invoices perpetrators for costs incurred due to absenteeism by emergency services and sues them if necessary.