Guardian Will End No-Poach Agreements That Suppress Wages and Limit Competition | Editorial credit: Ben Von Klemperer / shutterstock.com

NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James and New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin today announced a settlement with Guardian Service Industries, Inc. (Guardian) for using illegal no-poach agreements that can lower employees’ wages, reduce competition, and restrict employees’ job options by preventing competitors from hiring them. A joint investigation conducted by the attorneys general and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) found that Guardian, one of the largest building services contractors in the tri-state area, entered into no-poach agreements with buildings that they contracted with to provide services like maintenance and security. As a result of the settlements, Guardian will cancel any existing no-poach agreements and is barred from entering into new ones. Guardian will also cooperate with the attorneys general in any ongoing investigation they may conduct in the building services industry.

“When employers agree not to compete over hiring, workers lose out on better jobs, wages, and benefits,” said Attorney General James. “No-poach agreements are illegal and unfairly limit employees’ opportunities to grow their careers. I will continue to go after companies that use these anti-worker agreements and ensure every worker has a fair shot at better working conditions. I thank Attorney General Platkin and our partners at the FTC for their collaboration in this investigation that will help workers across both of our states.”

“No-poach agreements limit workers’ freedom to advance their careers, restricting their ability to seek better job opportunities and improved wages and benefits in a competitive labor market,” said Attorney General Platkin. “These illegal agreements reduce workers’ bargaining power as well as their earning potential and career growth. With the combined resources of the FTC, Attorney General James, and my office, we will continue advocating and fighting for workers who remain trapped in these unfair conditions.”

Guardian, which is headquartered in New York, provides staff for residential and commercial buildings. Guardian employees provide a variety of services, including pest control, maintenance, security, and cleaning. An investigation by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG), the Office of the New Jersey Attorney General, and the FTC revealed that Guardian entered into no-poach agreements with the buildings they operated in. These agreements effectively reduced employees’ career opportunities and wages by preventing Guardian’s clients from hiring them.

The settlement with Guardian ends their no-poach agreements and prevents them from using similar agreements in the future. Guardian must also notify the attorneys general if a competitor attempts to enforce or enter into a no-poach agreement with Guardian at any point in the next 10 years. In addition, Guardian must certify to the attorneys general that they are complying with the settlement each year for the next 10 years.

Today’s announcement continues Attorney General James’ work to stop illegal no-poach agreements that stifle competition and hurt workers’ careers. In May 2024, Attorney General James and a coalition of federal and state partners ended the NCAA’s transfer eligibility rule that forced college athletes to either stay in colleges they wanted to leave or miss out on athletic opportunities, limiting their career potential. Attorney General James has ended the use of no-poach agreements by the five largest commercial underwriters in the United States, including First American, Fidelity, Old Republic, Stewart, Amtrust, and two of the largest title insurance agencies, First Nationwide and Kensington Vanguard. In February 2023, Attorney General James also stopped home care company Affordable Senior Care from preventing patients and their caregivers from choosing the provider of their choice with an illegal agreement with a competitor not take each other’s existing patients, building on a December 2022 agreement with Marks Homecare Agency over the same issue.

This matter was handled by Senior Enforcement Counsel Bryan Bloom, Assistant Attorney General Michael Schwartz, and Deputy Bureau Chief Amy McFarlane, under the supervision of Bureau Chief Elinor Hoffmann, all of the Antitrust Bureau. The Antitrust Bureau is a part of the Division for Economic Justice, which is overseen by Chief Deputy Attorney General Chris D’Angelo and First Deputy Attorney General Jennifer Levy.

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