The recent assaults: silent tragedies
In the past two weeks, two very serious assaults have been reported against security personnel in Thunder Bay. One guard suffered an orbital fracture, another was beaten into concussion, with broken bones and muscle damage—plus, undoubtedly, psychological trauma and PTSD. Yet, unlike shootings or violent crimes against members of the public, these assaults scarcely made headlines or sparked any wider public conversation. Why?
In one case, a woman was arrested after pointing an imitation firearm at a guard at the Landmark Hotel on Dawson Road. In another incident, police say a guard escorting an unwanted person was violently attacked; the perpetrator was later arrested and faces multiple charges.
When even violent acts—armed threats, physical assault, fractured bones—against people whose job is to protect the public barely register as news, we must wonder: has the public become desensitized? Has violence against security workers become so commonplace that it’s no longer considered “newsworthy”? Or worse: does the public simply not care about the guards who help keep them—and public spaces—safe?
Security guards: low pay, high risk
Security guards are not police. They do not carry the same full legal powers or authority. But in many respects, they are frontline public safety workers. According to the Role of a Security Guard in Ontario, guards often act as first responders, crowd controllers, emergency responders, and witnesses in public safety incidents. They are frequently the first people to intervene in fights, to escort unwanted persons, to secure scenes, and to interact with individuals in crisis. The guard assaulted recently in Thunder Bay reportedly was just hours before his beating involved in breaking up a fight in a public space—exactly the kind of intervention many people expect from police, but which was handled by the guard. He did his job and was then stalked and brutally attacked after he clocked out.
Yet despite the value of the work, many security guards earn minimum wage or less. They often provide and pay for their own uniforms, protective gear and equipment—including flashlights, radios, even PPE—and must cope with shift work, isolation, potential violence, and psychological stress for relatively little compensation. Unlike many emergency responders, the majority of security guards do not benefit from systematic mental health support, workplace injury benefits, or robust union protection. In Ontario, fewer than half of security workers are unionized, and those who are often rely on their union benefits for medical and psychological recovery. For the guards who are not unionized, however, options for paid sick leave, post-traumatic stress treatment, or full compensation for injuries are limited or nonexistent.
A recent SafetyMag article highlighted that violent workplace incidents involving security guards began spiking sharply around 2021, yet there is no clear government oversight body or national standard for protecting guards on the job. The article also references the 2020 killing of Mario Ruffolo, a 62-year-old security guard in Guelph, Ontario, who was beaten to death while working at a train station—a case that received little public scrutiny.
In Canada more broadly, the private security sector is growing rapidly. According to occupational safety analyses, this expansion has been accompanied by an increase in workplace violence, assaults and fatalities involving security personnel.
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Sign Up TodayWhy the silence? Marginalization, invisibility, and policy failure
There are several reasons why assaults on security guards often go unnoticed or unexamined:
- Media and public indifference: Security guards are often invisible or marginalized in the public imagination. They’re cast as “rent-a-cops” or “bouncers,” rather than as critical first responders. The idea that violence against them is noteworthy rarely gains traction unless a death occurs. This invisibility means that serious assaults—even those that result in lasting injury or trauma—get little attention.
- Lack of policy or advocacy: Unlike police officers or paramedics, security guards do not have a national body advocating for enhanced protections, standards, or working conditions. As the SafetyMag piece argues, there is no significant oversight or regulatory mechanism to prevent or respond to violence against guards—despite clear evidence that such violence is increasing.
- Under-reporting and classification issues: In many cases, assaults on security guards may not be reported as workplace injuries, or may not be tracked separately in public crime or workplace injury statistics. This undercuts our ability to measure and respond to the problem. Without robust data, it’s easier for policy makers to ignore.
- Workers’ compensation gaps: Guard injuries—especially mental health issues like PTSD—are hard to attribute directly to workplace incidents, and many guards may lack employer support or resources for recovery, especially if they are not unionized or formally employed. This lack of follow-up care contributes to further suffering, long-term disability, and risk of re-traumatization.
- Social stigma and fear of retaliation: Security guards may be reluctant to speak out about assaults or injuries, particularly when they fear being blamed, held liable, or facing criticism for intervening. There can also be a sense that reporting an incident may jeopardize future employment.
What needs to change
If Canada is serious about public safety, and about respecting those who take personal risk to keep the public safe, we must rethink how the law, governments, and public opinion view and treat security guards. The following reforms are urgently needed:
- Elevate the status of security guards as public safety professionals. They should receive legal recognition and protections commensurate with their role as first responders. In cases where a guard is assaulted in the course of performing their duties—including escorting, crowd control, or intervention in violent incidents—these assaults should be treated with the same gravity as assaults on police or other emergency personnel. Penalties for attackers should be enhanced accordingly.
- Stronger legislation and amendments to the Private Security and Investigative Services Act to provide clearer standards, better training, mental health supports, post-injury care, and structured oversight. These should include mandatory minimum training, workplace violence prevention, reporting requirements, and mental health follow up.
- Guaranteed workplace injury and mental health coverage regardless of union membership. Security guards who are injured on the job—physically or psychologically—must have access to medical care, rehabilitation, paid sick leave, and compensation for lost wages and trauma. This should be enforced regardless of whether the guard works part-time, as a contractor, or for a small private company.
- Higher pay and professionalization. Security guard work is dangerous, demanding, and socially important. To attract and retain qualified people—many of whom are immigrants, students, or community members who take on this work out of a moral commitment—the job must be compensated fairly, with benefits, overtime, and training. A wage floor, or premium pay for night or risk-based assignments, should be considered as part of professionalization.
- Joint training and integration between private security and public police. By building programs that train security guards and police together, establish coordinated protocols, and create direct lines of communication, we can improve response to violent incidents, trauma, and crisis situations. Security guards should not be left alone to handle fights, mental health crises, or dangerous situations without backup or coordination with public responders.
- Public awareness campaigns to shift perception of security guards—from marginal “rent-a-cops” to community guardians. The public should appreciate the role these workers play in maintaining safe public and private spaces, and recognize that they too are at risk. Heightened awareness can foster empathy, increase reporting of assaults, and push for policy recognition.
- Independent investigations and oversight of guard assaults. When a guard is seriously hurt or killed, or even when a guard intervenes in violence and is later attacked, there should be an independent review. Too often, investigations are left in the hands of private security companies or employers, who may have a conflict of interest. Public oversight—similar to what happens in police-involved shootings or workplace fatalities—must be applied. As noted in the SafetyMag article, the 2020 death of Mario Ruffolo in Guelph was not subject to a public, on-site safety investigation, and questions remain about accountability.
Conclusion: A call to legislative action
As Canadians—and especially as residents of Thunder Bay, now designated by some as “Canada’s murder capital”—we must confront the fact that we ask security guards to bear physical and psychological risks every day, often for low pay, little support, and with little recognition. When a guard stepping in to break up a fight ends his shift only to be stalked, beaten, and hospitalized for fractures and concussion, that is a failure of society itself.
It is time for a Private Members’ Bill in Ontario—and ultimately federal legislation—that elevates the role and rank of security guards, recognizes them as public safety professionals, extends to them robust post-injury protections, fair compensation, and mental health care, and holds violent attackers to the same standard as those who assault police or paramedics.
Security guards do more than stand at doors or check bags. They hold space. They intervene in crisis. They protect us—sometimes from ourselves. We owe them not only our gratitude, but our legal and policy commitment. The guards who protect you, your family, and your community deserve more than minimum wage and gratitude: they deserve protection, respect, and justice.
