Mandatory training for Nova Scotia bouncers
Posted Apr 9, 2010 03:21:08 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Bouncers in Nova Scotia will have to have mandatory training when a proposed development to the Act Respecting the Provision of Security Services and Investigative Services comes into effect.
Justice Minister Ross Landry says the bill will make bars in the province safer for both bouncers and patrons.
“We have heard about incidents in our bars where patrons have been injured and where private security guards have been injured. The inclusion of mandatory training in the bill will ensure that individuals have knowledge and skills to perform their duties to better protect themselves and the citizens of Nova Scotia,” Landry told reporters during a press conference at Province House this morning.
Cyril Giffin told reporters anything to improve security training gives him personal satisfaction. He lost his son Stephen after an incident with a bouncer at Captain Eli’s Restaurant and Lounge in December 1999.
“He had been pulled out of the bar in a choke hold,” said Giffin. “There were some questions at the trial as to whether that actually caused his death or not.”
The bill would also apply to security guards, private investigators, bodyguards and the Canadian Corps of Commissionaires, who would be screened, licensed and subject to a code of conduct. Once trained, security staff would hold portable licenses.
The bill represents the first significant change governing the province’s security industry in 35 years. It brings Nova Scotia in line with regulations in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec.
