Preventing
Workplace
Violence
Workplace violence—defined as any act or threat of physical violence, harassment, intimidation, or other threatening disruptive behavior at work—is a major concern for employers and employees nationwide. According to OSHA, acts of workplace violence are the third-leading cause of fatal occupational injuries in the U.S.
NIOSH groups workplace violence into four main categories:
■ Criminal intent, which covers crimes committed against a business and its property by people with no relationship to the business or its employees.
■ Customer/client, in which a customer or client becomes violent while interacting with the business.
■ Worker-on-worker, which occurs when a current or past employee attacks or threatens another employee.
■ Personal relationship, in which the violent perpetrator has a personal relationship with the victim but not the business.
Factors that may increase the risk of violence at certain worksites include: exchanging money with the public; working late at night or in areas with high crime rates; working alone or in isolated areas; and working with volatile, unstable people.
Consider these steps to reduce the risk of violence in your workplace:
■ Create a workplace violence prevention program based on a zero-tolerance policy. Ensure that all workers know the policy and understand that all claims of workplace violence will be investigated and remedied promptly.
■ Maximize physical/on-site security by providing ample facility lighting, controlled access to workplace areas, and other enhancements.
■ Ensure that non-employees have limited access to your facility.
■ Train employees on situational awareness to enhance their ability to notice and stop potential threats.
■ Ensure solo workers are protected.
■ Communicate effectively by helping employees address problems with co-workers and implementing a system to notify employees of potentially violent situations, among other features.
Graphic by David von Diemar from Unsplash.
