What You Can Do About Workplace Violence

[almaty 19]

Violence in the workplace makes headlines all too often. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health's Violence in the Workplace" study, each week "an average of 20 workers are murdered and 18,000 are assaulted while at work."

More sobering statistics: According to Northwestern National Life Insurance Co., 2,500 workers per 100,000 have been physically attacked on the job. The company's survey further notes that 44 percent of workplace attacks were committed by customers or clients, 24 percent by strangers, 20 percent by coworkers, 7 percent by bosses and 3 percent by former employees.

According to the US Department of Labor's Bureau of Statistics, homicide is the leading cause of death for women in the workplace and the second leading cause of death for men. And, according to the US Bureau of Justice Statistics, more than 2 million people become victims of violent crime at work each year.

Some experts blame lax gun laws for the carnage, while others say the ever-increasing pace of work and the stress it creates are factors as well. Whatever the reason, violence has become a grim reality for HR professionals.

So what, if anything, can HR people do to stop the madness?

Lowering the Numbers

Larry Chavez, principal of Critical Incident Awareness, has seen violence of all kinds in his time. His background includes 29 years in law enforcement, and he is also a hostage negotiator. And when there's a well-publicized incident of workplace violence, his phone rings off the hook.

Chavez hopes that his phone will eventually stop ringing. He believes that many incidents of workplace violence are preventable with minimal intervention by properly trained personnel.

"Training is key," says Chavez. "Companies can't afford not to do training in this area. By the time someone comes into your office with an Uzi, you have no choice but to run."

Although Chavez agrees that not all situations can be prevented, he does believe that management often misses some pretty clear signals that distressed employees send before acts of violence occur.

Warning Signs

Chavez has compiled a comprehensive list of warning signs from his days on the front lines:

Change in a person's behavior.

Changes in the person's patterns.

Newly acquired behavior, such as suddenly not showing up on time or at all.

Newly acquired poor personal hygiene.

Romantic or sexual obsessions.

Obsessions with, and possession or access to, weapons and/or paramilitary training.

Zero-Tolerance Policy

In addition to proper training, Chavez believes there must be a zero-tolerance policy straight from the CEO. It should clearly state what kind of behavior violates the policy, and it should be distributed to all employees, not just included in the employee handbook.

Patricia Reppucci, HR manager for Cardinal Information Companies, also advocates a zero-tolerance policy. While at another company, Reppucci had to deal with a situation that could easily have become violent. Her former employer had a very loose policy in place and no plan for handling such a situation. As a result, Reppucci was unable to get the support she needed to defuse the incident, and the outcome could have been disastrous.

"If your company isn't prepared to deal with these issues, you need to think about walking," she says.

Reppucci's current employer takes workplace violence very seriously. Her company has a zero-tolerance policy, and management does not hesitate to bring in the corporate office's security team at the first sign of trouble. Reppucci is currently arranging training for her frontline managers so that they are fully prepared for any incident.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

I've got a co-worker that likes to do his 'pretend' martial art moves on me. One afternoon, as I had swiveled my chair around, he pretended to kick me in the crotch. All I said was, "Yeah, that'd do it." I haven't figured out how to tell him not to do it again without sounding like an idiot. I'm not sure why he feels comfortable to do it to me because I imagine most of the people here would tell him to knock it off.

[almaty 19]

wpv...is a major issue in the workplace..i deal with at least 5 new cases a week.......

[one...two...tree 2,762]

wpv...is a major issue in the workplace..i deal with at least 5 new cases a week.......

Any recommendations on what I should say or do next time he acts out one of his martial moves? I almost feel like because I didn't tell him to knock it off before that I've in essence given him permission to. I keep thinking that it's not that big of a deal, but when he does it, it's annoying as hell.