How to Prevent and Be Prepared for Workplace Violence

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the workplace is the most dangerous place to be in America.

Your company must implement a violence prevention policy to ensure that you and your employees are prepared to recognize warning signs and know what to do in the event of an attack. It must be clear to all of your employees that violence and threats will not be tolerated.

Although work-related homicides decreased 52 percent from 1994 to 2009; workplace violence, including assaults and suicides, still made up 18 percent of all work-related fatal occupational injuries in 2009.* The vast majority, 67 percent, of work-related homicides are the result of robberies. Robbery is an exaggerated threat for truck drivers, who carry valuable cargo and personal belongings, travel to secluded areas to deliver goods, and work alone during late night and early morning hours.

However, this does not mean that violence within your own company can be ignored. Coworkers and former coworkers commit 15 percent of work-related homicides. In August 2010, a truck driver facing termination from a beer distributor in Connecticut fatally shot eight co-workers and wounded two others, before committing suicide. Although workplace violence to this extreme occurs relatively infrequently and rarely results in homicide, it is still a serious threat that must be addressed.

Workplace violence incurs major costs to companies each year. More than 1.175 million work days are lost by 500,000 employees each year, for an annual cost of more than $36 billion when injuries, death, post-incident counseling, legal actions and fees, court awards, poor morale, increased absenteeism, productivity loss, turnover and bad publicity are accounted for. Yet, as of the last survey taken by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), more than 70 percent of workplaces had not issued a violence prevention policy.

A personnel policy should be designed to meet your company’s specific needs. It should be incorporated into your employee handbook, so that all employees have the policy in writing. The policy should emphasize the consequence of violation and provide a detailed structure and process that will encourage employees to report any threat, harassment or violent incident.

Refer to the following tips for further information on implementing a violence prevention policy, if you have not already done so:

Select and train management officials in conflict resolution and nonviolent techniques for handling hostage, hijacking and crisis incidents and counseling situations. Put a crisis management plan and team in place to take immediate action, if necessary.

Designate and publicize the names of company officials or employees that will handle concerns and complaints involving threats, harassment and violence confidentially.

Train managers and supervisors to identify and deal with early warning signs and potential safety problems associated with workplace violence. They should keep a written record of any disciplinary action and have the employee sign it. All threats and complaints of harassment and violence should be reported and investigated immediately.

Instruct managers and supervisors to look for the following behavioral indicators, which could be early warning signs:

• Excessive absenteeism, tardiness or work breaks
• Missed deadlines
• Poor work quality
• Sudden or significant job performance deterioration
• Difficulty with coworkers
• Social withdrawal
• Talk of suicide
• Delusional statements
• Paranoia
• Unfounded concerns about safety

Provide safety education for employees and explicitly describe conduct that is not acceptable. Employees must know how to protect themselves. Teach ways to recognize, avoid or diffuse potentially violent situations. Make sure they know to avoid isolated areas and individuals who show warning signs of violence or unacceptable behavior.

Notify employees of services that could prevent issues from escalating, including employee assistance programs (EAPs), employee support services and health care resources available to them and their families.

Provide employees with detailed steps to take if they witness or are subjected to workplace violence. They should alert their supervisors to any concerns about safety or security and report all incidents immediately in writing, including

• Any incidents of harassing, hostile or belligerent speech, emails or behavior
• Verbal threats or any other threatening conduct
• Abuse  
• Suspicious activity in or near entry or exit points, loading docks, parking areas, garages and immediate vicinity
• Broken doors, windows and locks

Devise a strategy that will minimize the threat of violence if an employee is terminated. Follow the same protocol when terminating both executives and laborers to prevent discrimination among varying levels of employment. All dismissals should be conducted in a private setting with a senior company leader present to serve as a witness.

Upon termination, immediately disable the employee’s access to the company’s computer system and confiscate keys and company identification. Inform security guards of the terminated employee’s name. Remind all guards to follow standard security measures and not to allow terminated employees to return to the property without verified company authorization.

At any time, if the demeanor or behavior of the employee being dismissed is questionable, consider calling law enforcement for support.

Keep your drivers safe when they are on the road. Every driver should be equipped with a cellular phone and hand-held alarm or noise device. Your drivers should be required to prepare a daily route, along with stops, and keep a contact person informed of their location throughout the day. Emphasize the importance of avoiding locations and individuals that make them feel unsafe and remind them to only carry minimal money and required identification when traveling into community settings.

Be sure to keep employer-provided vehicles properly maintained to prevent opportunities for violent incidents that could occur while your drivers are stranded and vulnerable on the road.

Create an emergency-action plan, as required by federal law for all employers, and familiarize all of your employees with the procedures. Designate simple plans to minimize injury, summon assistance, notify employees and move people to a safe, pre-determined area, in case a violent incident occurs. Immediately report any violent incidents to the local police and make prompt medical evaluation and treatment available to employees after the event. Inform victims of their legal right to prosecute perpetrators, discuss the circumstances of the incident with staff members, and offer stress debriefing sessions and post-traumatic counseling services to help workers recover from a violent incident.

Remember, safety in the workplace is the responsibility of all employees, not just the security department.

*The most recent data available from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

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