13 February 2024
Tēnā koe Garry Johnston
Official Information Act request
Thank you for your email of 4 January 2024, requesting information about MSD
expenditure on security guards.
I have considered your request under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA).
Please find my decision on your request set out below.
1. What is the total expenditure per MSD office for the last financial year on
Security Guards? If per office is not available, then a total is acceptable.
In total, the Ministry paid $29,290,328 for Static security Guards for the last
financial year (period to 30 June 2023). Your request for expenditure broken
down by office is refused under section 18(f) of the OIA, on the basis that the
information requested cannot be made available without substantial collation or
research. To respond to this query, staff would need to manually review each
guard’s contract to find which office/s they work at and on what days. The
greater public interest is in the effective and efficient administration of the public
service. I have considered whether the Ministry would be able to respond to your
request given extra time, or the ability to charge for the information requested.
I have concluded that, in either case, the Ministry’s ability to undertake its work
would still be prejudiced.
2. This should include how The Ministry is charged e.g. hourly, daily, weekly,
monthly and the cost per Guard per unit of time.
Please find
Table one below in response to your query.
Table one: The amount the Ministry pays per guard per hour, broken
down by KiwiSaver status and level of guard qualification, as at 30 June
2023.
Level of Qualification
Kiwisaver Status
Amount paid by the
Ministry to Alliance
Level 1
No KiwiSaver
$31.60/hr
KiwiSaver
$32.48/hr
Level 3
No KiwiSaver
$32.91/hr
KiwiSaver
$33.83/hr
The Aurora Centre, 56 The Terrace, PO Box 1556, Wellington
– Telephone 04-916 3300 – Facsimile 04-918 0099
There are two exceptions to the above table. The first exception is the National
Office weekend rate, for which the Ministry pays $75.08 per hour. The second
exception is the Kaitiaki rate, for which the Ministry pays $36.39 per hour.
Additional context regarding security guards
The Ministry places a high priority on the safety of its staff and clients and has in
place a detailed security approach to reduce potential security risks.
Demand on Ministry frontline services is high and can be challenging for both
Ministry staff and clients. The Ministry is accountable for the security and safety
of staff and clients, and we take that responsibility seriously.
In supporting our clients and staff, the Ministry must also take into consideration
our obligations under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 and the New
Zealand Government Protective Security Requirements, which are mandatory
requirements that government agencies must follow. These considerations have
informed our current security model.
The Ministry continues to have a security guard presence at sites and there are
robust processes in place to ensure their part within the range of security
mechanisms is functioning effectively.
I will be publishing this decision letter, with your personal details deleted, on the
Ministry’s website in due course.
If you wish to discuss this response with us, please feel free to contact
[MSD request email]. If you are not satisfied with my decision on your request for information about
expenditure on security guards, you have the right to seek an investigation and
review by the Ombudsman. Information about how to make a complaint is
available a
t www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or 0800 802 602.
Yours sincerely
pp.
Magnus O’Neill
General Manager
Ministerial and Executive Services
