Coffs Harbour councillors reject motion to guarantee lifeguards remain in-house

A move to block City of Coffs Harbour from exploring options to outsource its lifeguards service has failed, following lengthy debate in the chamber on Thursday night.

Councillor Tony Judge’s motion - which was an attempt to use the power of the chamber to force council staff to abandon the idea of outsourcing - was defeated five votes to four. 

Council currently employs five full-time lifeguards, a spokesperson said.

Despite community pushback and a concerted campaign by the union representing the workers, council staff will continue discussions with Australian Lifeguard Services (ALS) – a subsidiary of Surf Lifesaving NSW – about the possibility of running the Coffs Harbour lifeguard service.

The vote came in the wake of weeks of community opposition and union concerns over job security.

In a Facebook post on August 29, Judge said he brought the motion to council “because the community and lifeguards themselves are strongly opposed to privatising our lifeguard service. That included a petition with over 2,000 signatures”.

In a staff statement, City of Coffs Harbour said it “highly values and appreciates the work of the lifeguards and is conscious of the desire to maintain, and if possible, increase the service level for beach patrols and lifeguard services generally”.

The United Services Union (USU) has expressed concerns about job losses and lower pay for lifeguards. Surf Life Saving NSW CEO, Steven Pearce, spoke during the public forum, responding to what he called a “campaign of miscommunication”.

“Our primary objective is to retain all the local employees and council employees.”

A motion moved by Mayor Nikki Williams and seconded by Councillor Cath Fowler was carried by council. It stated that council staff “will continue consulting with the current lifeguard team and their representatives and consider any alternative proposals to address current service issues and challenges”.

It also requested that staff “engage an independent consultant to meet with key stakeholder groups, including but not limited to, volunteer surf lifesaving clubs, board rider clubs, surf schools and education providers”.

Council will continue to operate the lifeguard service during the review.

Thumnail image supplied City of Coffs Harbour.