Activities

CoESS aims at fully implementing its Statutes. With this objective in mind, it establishes a series of both internal and external activities and initiatives.

Internal activities/initiatives

The CoESS General Assemblies offer all CoESS member federations (active members, associated members, company members, corresponding members and supporting members) the opportunity to take stock of results achieved, define mandates for new actions, exchange views and debate ongoing issues.

CoESS is continually looking to broaden its membership and would highly welcome additional members in the countries where it presently has no representation. It therefore maintains close liaison with private security federations and partners in those particular countries.

CoESS’ work is structured around eight Working Committees:

• Guarding
• Transport of Valuables (CIT or Cash-In-Transit)
• Monitoring and Remote Surveillance
• Airport Security
• Maritime Security
• Critical Infrastructure
• Social Dialogue
• Cohesion

Professional and vocational training are considered transversal topics and are hence dealt with individually by each of the Working Committees according to their specific private security segment and area of expertise.

The Statutes allow for the creation of additional Working Committees depending on need or context.

External activities/initiatives

Private security services are carried out in a comprehensive framework of legislation, policies and practices defined by the EU Institutions and directly or indirectly affecting the market.

CoESS is a unique confederation in that it is formally recognised by the EU Institutions, is a privileged partner and is granted consultative status in many EU dossiers. In Europe, no similar representative industry voice exists speaking on behalf of the private security services sector.

CoESS builds and maintains strong partnerships with the relevant Directorates-General within the European Commission (Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, Internal Market, Enterprise and Industry, Education and Culture, Justice, Home Affairs, Mobility and Transport, Enlargement, Economic and Financial Affairs and External Relations) and with the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union.

CoESS is also a privileged interlocutor and partner in other European organisations and bodies, e.g. the European Standardization Institute (CEN), the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC), the European Organisation for Security (EOS), the European Corporate Security Association (ECSA), the European Business Services Round Table (EBSRT), the European Employers Network (EEN) and others. It maintains a close working relationship with other European confederations, amongst which BusinessEurope, EuroCommerce, HOSPEEM, EFCI, Eurociett, CEMR-EP and FIEC.

CoESS, together with its trade union counterpart, UNI Europa, is very active in the European Sectoral Social Dialogue for the private security services sector.

Next to these activities and initiatives at European level, CoESS maintains close working relationships with and has – in some cases – signed formal cooperation agreements with international security organisations and partners: World Security Federation (WSF), Russian Association of Security Industry (RASI), Security Industry Alliance in South-Africa (SIA), Asian Professional Security Association (APSA), Central Association of Private Security Industry in India (CAPSI), Australian Security Industry Association (ASIAL), New Zealand Security Association (NZSA), National Association of Security Companies in the US (NASCO) and the Ligue Internationale des Sociétés de Surveillance.