Description
GardaWorld Corporation is a Canadian private security firm, headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, with 102,000 employees as of January 2020.
GardaWorld International Protective Services, the international division of the company, began operations in 1984. GardaWorld Security Corporation was established as Trans-Québec Security Inc. by Stéphan Crétier in 1995, who invested initially $25,000. The company runs physical security guard services and armoured car services globally, with over 200 offices worldwide.
2020 investigation into armored truck crashes and deaths
A March 1, 2020 article by the Tampa Bay Times found the company engaged in a decade of dangerous behavior and its trucks frequently causes crashes: "At least 19 people have been killed in Garda crashes since 2008, three in the past year alone." Based in part on a former employee's documents and data (which GardaWorld has unsuccessfully argued was stolen from the company) and then used unsuccessfully in two dismissed lawsuits and 90 interviews, 56 of them being current or former drivers, the article shows that Garda trucks frequently lacked reliable brakes, seat belts and sometimes even seats. The article also documents that drivers often received barely any training and said they were pressured to work long hours, even after repeated crashes. The GardaWorld database showed that during one period there were over 100 crashes on average monthly and that over a two and half year period over 320 people were injured. Additionally, the former employee alleges that GardaWorld offered to pay her to buy her silence, but that she chose not to accept money because: "I know I made the right decision by not accepting the money or signing a release. I believed in the truth prevailing - and am grateful to be able to share my story to help others."
