Information AboutWackenhut |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT WACKENHUT | |
| companies based in florida | |
| security companies | |
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OVERVIEW Wackenhut is a major provider of security guard services in the United States. A number of Fortune 500 companies are among its clients. One subsidiary is Wackenhut Services Incorporated (WSI), which is a primary contractor to U.S. Government agencies including NASA and the Army . Wackenhut also provides contract security and Emergency Response services to Local Government s, particularly in Public Transport systems. Wackenhut also offers security for employers experiencing poor relations with Labor Union s, including Strike Action s. Wackenhut has a poor reputation with labor unions as a result. During the 1980s Wackenhut was active in the field of Airport Security ; however, it has stated that it was due to pressure from airports and Airline s to compromise the company's standards by cutting wages that they only protected four airports in the United States on September 11, 2001 . Airports in the United States are now protected by the Transportation Security Administration of the Department Of Homeland Security . Wackenhut is involved in protecting Nuclear Reactor s, the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System , and other high-security government installations, including those of the Department Of Energy . In 2004 Wackenhut's nuclear plant guard services came under intense public and media scrutiny, mostly due to concerns over Terrorism but also under pressure from labor unions such as the Service Employees International Union , which operates a Web site devoted to criticizing Wackenhut. Ironically, the company moved from the Miami suburb of Coral Gables to Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, in part because Miami's high crime rate made it difficult to attract good workers. WACKENHUT AND PRIVATE PRISONS Having expanding into providing Food Service s for Prisons in the 1960s , Wackenhut in 1984 launched a subsidiary to design and manage Jail s and Detention Center s for the burgeoning Private Prison market in the United States and abroad. Wackenhut became the nation's second-largest for-profit prison operator. Although the corrections branch of Wackenhut was financially successful, critics claimed the company's guards abused inmates in Florida, Texas , New Mexico , and Louisiana . In 1999, Wackenhut was stripped of a $12-million-a-year contract in Texas and fined $625,000 for failing to live up to promises in the running of a state jail after when several guards were indicted for having sex with female inmates. In s before hiring guards, which led to several alleged cases of guards physically and sexually abusing inmates. In the U.S., Wackenhut has appeared in the Federal Courts 62 times since 1999 , largely resulting from prisoners' claims of Human Rights abuses. The company has been accused of trying to maximise profits in its private prisons at the expense of Drug Rehabilitation , counselling and literacy programs. In 1995 Wackenhut was investigated for diverting $700,000 intended for drug treatment programs at a Texas prison. Among other facilities, Wackenhut subsidiary Australasian Correctional Management (ACM) operated the Woomera Immigration Reception And Processing Centre , which opened in 1999 and was closed in 2003 after allegations of widespread abuse of Refugee claimants. In a documentary screened on Special Broadcasting Service in 2000 , George Wackenhut welcomed Australia's immigrant detention policies, saying, "(Australia is) really starting to punish people, as they should have done all along." Wackenhut describes itself as no longer involved in the private prison industry in the US, stating that it abandoned the market due to low Returns On Investment , excessive government regulation, and negative Publicity affecting its other, more profitable operations. The GEO Group , Inc. now runs former Wackenhut facilities in 14 states, as well as in South Africa and Australia. Some facilities, such as the Wackenhut Corrections Centers in New York, retain the Wackenhut name despite no longer having any open connection with the company. WACKENHUT AND THE CIA Frequent rumors that his company was in the employ of the congressman in his sting, resigned immediately after a meeting with George Wackenhut. REFERENCES
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