Former police sergeant withdrew application to work at London 2012 due to concerns over employment process and pay

A former police sergeant who signed up to work for G4S at the Olympics has told how he withdrew his application over fears the recruitment process was "totally chaotic" and the firm was simply looking for cheap labour.

Robert Brown, who served for 30 years with Kent police, claimed he knew many other retired officers who had decided against working at the Games for the same reasons.

He said he had been given verbal commitments that staff would be paid £14 an hour, but that the contract he received said he would be entitled to £6.05 an hour for working outside the venues, and £8.50 for working inside the stadium.

"It is actually very sad," Brown said. "I was looking forward to working at this historic event, but it would have been a waste of my time. The public needs to be aware of this."

Brown has grade one private security qualifications and worked for the Home Office, advising on covert operations, after he left the police.

He said he applied to G4S when the adverts started to appear in November last year. But he was not called for interview in Stratford, east London, until February.

"They were trying to process hundreds of people and we had to fill out endless forms. It was totally chaotic and it was obvious to me that this was being done too quickly and too late," Brown said.

The first training day involved presentations on how to be polite to members of the public, and follow-up training on how to pat people down.

"The instructors had been given a script that they had to stick to, and if you asked a question, they would not be able to give you an answer. The training was very basic and minimal. Having undergone their training I realised that they only wanted cheap labour.

"My great worry was this was being done before the vetting process had been completed."

Brown withdrew his application before the third training instalment after receiving the contract about pay.

"At the beginning of the process we were told we could get expenses and some kind of accommodation for people who would be travelling to venues," he said. "But then I was told there would be no expenses paid and no accommodation either. They were not guaranteeing work over a specific period and the pay was poor. I decided to wash my hands of it. It became obvious that it was becoming a farce."

After attending the first training session, Brown asked whether he could apply to be a trainer. "But when I went to the interview it was obvious by the questions they were asking that they thought I was over-qualified, so I didn't get it.

"It has been an awful experience. In my view, they should have started recruiting a year ago to get the numbers they needed. I am 63 years old and I regarded this as a unique chance to get involved in an historic event. It's an awful situation."

G4S said its security training was graded and that it lasted from four to 14 days, depending on the role.

"In this case, he may have pulled out before the training had been completed," a spokesman said.

G4S insisted it would pay a minimum of £8.50 an hour during the Games.