A Message from Peter Panaritis

Over the past few months I have been incredibly impressed, but not surprised by our team at G4S. COVID-19 and the Canada-wide shutdown have brought many challenges, and as always our people have risen to meet them.

Firstly, I’d like to thank all of our employees who have been on the frontlines protecting and serving our customers. You have gone above and beyond the normal standard of duty. It is because of you that both G4S and our clients have been able to get through this incredibly difficult time. You should be proud of what you have accomplished.

I never take for granted the line of danger our people on the frontlines put themselves in, nor how fragile life can be. I think of Personne Clerval, a G4S employee who tragically passed away due to a COVID-19 related illness. Mr. Clerval was a dedicated and exemplary G4S team member. My thoughts and prayers are with his family, as well as the friends and colleagues he cultivated during his 4-year career with G4S.

I’ve been especially proud of how our team has demonstrated and lived our values.

Teamwork: I have seen team members right across the organization raise their hands and ask how they can help. We have the sales team calling our guards to check in; we have our bid writers supporting our HR team with near full-time recruiting efforts; we have managers at all levels connecting with our team members in quarantine to help keep spirits high; and we have screening officers selflessly offering to take extra shifts to support colleagues who need to be home, with pay.

Service Excellence: We are also getting calls and emails from clients around the country thanking our guards, our supervisors and our client management team for their service. Our clients have looked to G4S and our people to step up and keep them safe in these tough times. We have had overwhelmingly positive feedback from our clients about our people and their passion for safety and security shown while on duty. This has strengthened not only our relationship with our clients as a trusted advisor, but generated strong results within our Peter Panaritis business as well. Chief Executive Officer G4S Canada Innovation: Our people have come up with creative new ideas and solutions to today’s challenges. Our team has been working tirelessly on “Return-To-Work” strategies and implementation for both our own business and for clients. Our technology team has quickly put together industry leading solutions for temperature screening, remote video monitoring and access control. Our recruiting team has created QR codes that allow employees to verify their health and wellbeing on a daily basis.

Respect: While we have all faced our own personal challenges during the past three months, our respect for each other and our industry has never wavered. Every day I hold my challenge coin in hand as a reminder of the core values for which we stand. While it could be so easy to disconnect during this time, the camaraderie and respect I have witnessed again and again, is inspiring.

It is my hope that while we continue to see changes to our communities that may cause stress and worry, we see enough good in our team and its ability to always put safety first, to give us hope.