I REFER to the article "RSH Limited apologises to guide dog owner Cassandra Chiu for commotion at Zara" (ST Online, last Monday).
The Union of Security Employees is disappointed that the security officer has been placed as the party to be blamed in this incident and that his agency has been requested to remove him from his deployment site at the Ngee Ann City outlet.
From the checks we made, we believe that the officer involved was following the instructions of the retail outlet, and the article seems to corroborate this by quoting Ms Cassandra Chiu as saying a "woman claiming to be the store manager eventually confirmed that guide dogs were not allowed and called the police".
While we are fully compassionate about the duress Ms Chiu faced, we take umbrage at the fact that the officer, while doing his job, was unnecessarily provoked into a reaction.
While we acknowledge that security officers should remain calm and composed when carrying out their duties, mutual respect from all parties is also important to create a safe and pleasant environment for both our security officers and members of the public.
That this incident led to the officer suffering a dent in his career is disheartening as the officer was simply doing his job and can now possibly face issues with his livelihood.
We urge members of the public to respect our security officers, who are often deployed at the front lines and, at times, are subjected to abuse. Our officers perform an important job, and the union will stand by them if they are unfairly treated.
Hareenderpal Singh
President
Union of Security Employees
The Union of Security Employees is disappointed that the security officer has been placed as the party to be blamed in this incident and that his agency has been requested to remove him from his deployment site at the Ngee Ann City outlet.
From the checks we made, we believe that the officer involved was following the instructions of the retail outlet, and the article seems to corroborate this by quoting Ms Cassandra Chiu as saying a "woman claiming to be the store manager eventually confirmed that guide dogs were not allowed and called the police".
While we are fully compassionate about the duress Ms Chiu faced, we take umbrage at the fact that the officer, while doing his job, was unnecessarily provoked into a reaction.
While we acknowledge that security officers should remain calm and composed when carrying out their duties, mutual respect from all parties is also important to create a safe and pleasant environment for both our security officers and members of the public.
That this incident led to the officer suffering a dent in his career is disheartening as the officer was simply doing his job and can now possibly face issues with his livelihood.
We urge members of the public to respect our security officers, who are often deployed at the front lines and, at times, are subjected to abuse. Our officers perform an important job, and the union will stand by them if they are unfairly treated.
Hareenderpal Singh
President
Union of Security Employees
