Did You Know?
- According to a recent study by career expert Zippia, 2 million Americans are the victims of workplace violence—including threats, bullying, intimidation/harassment, physical assaults, stabbings, shootings, arson and more—every year.
- In 2020, workplace assaults resulted in over 20,000 injuries and fatalities.
- Recent statistics from the U.S. Department of Labor and U.S. Department of Justice confirm that some 30,000 sexual assaults are reported in the workplace annually.
- Incidents of workplace violence cost American businesses an estimated $250 to $330 billion per year.
- In a 2019 survey of U.S. workers, 94% claim to have experienced some form of bullying at work, while a study that same year by the Society for Human Resource Management revealed that one in seven American workers don’t feel safe in their workplace.
Whether due to an actual increase in cases or better reporting, “incidents of workplace violence are rising and becoming more dangerous as workers are increasingly stressed due to mandatory overtime, long hours, mental illness and other factors,” said Carol Cambridge, an authority on workplace violence and founder of the Stay Safe Project, a Glendale, Ariz.-based provider of instruction on how to promote safety in the workplace.
Attorney Lauren Rayner Davis is a senior associate at New York City-based law firm Rottenberg Lipman Rich and an expert in labor and employment-related issues such as workplace violence. Cambridge and Davis discussed the growing threat of workplace violence, best practices when it comes to reporting these incidents and tips to help minimize the threat of these activities in the first place.
“Construction and utilities are often high-pressure industries that can create the conditions for confrontations that range from verbal threats to violent attacks.”
— Carol Cambridge
The basics
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration defines workplace violence as “[actual] violence or the threat of violence against workers” that can occur at or outside the workplace.
While Davis noted that violence in the workplace can be perpetrated by anyone, including co-workers, “a significant percentage of violent incidents are perpetrated by individuals from outside the workplace, such as those who have no legitimate business relationship to the workplace,” she said.
“Right before the pandemic, a 2019 survey revealed that nearly one-third of American workers felt ‘ill equipped’ to handle violence in the workplace, which really underscores why training and communication regarding an employer’s safety plan and program are so critical,” Davis said. “More recently, a study found that, despite substantial efforts during the pandemic to implement and disseminate safety plans, one in four employees in the United States claimed to have ‘witnessed workplace violence happening to a colleague in the past five years,’ while 12% claimed to have been the target of workplace violence themselves.”
Cambridge agreed, noting the unique threat of workplace violence that exists in the contracting profession.
“Construction and utilities are often high-pressure industries that can create the conditions for confrontations that range from verbal threats to violent attacks,” Cambridge said. “Many incidents unfortunately still go unreported, which can leave companies in a vulnerable position.”
Proper handling
Davis confirmed that all U.S. employers are subject to the General Duty Clause under the Occupational Safety and Health Act.
“Under the OSH Act, all employers must provide a work environment that’s ‘free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm,’” she said, adding that the onus is on employers to identify and take appropriate precautions to minimize the risk of violence.
“One of the best protections employers can offer their workers is to establish and enforce a zero-tolerance policy toward workplace violence, which covers all workers, vendors, suppliers, clients, visitors, contractors and anyone else who may come in contact with company personnel.”
— Lauren Rayner Davis
“One of the best protections employers can offer their workers is to establish and enforce a zero-tolerance policy toward workplace violence, which covers all workers, vendors, suppliers, clients, visitors, contractors and anyone else who may come in contact with company personnel,” she said. “Per OSHA, a well-written and implemented workplace violence prevention program, combined with engineering controls, administrative controls and training, can reduce the incidence of workplace violence.”
To help ensure the effectiveness of a company’s zero-tolerance policy, “it’s critical to ensure that all workers know the policy and understand that all claims of workplace violence will be investigated and remedied promptly,” Davis continued.
“OSHA encourages employers to develop additional procedures as necessary to protect employees, such as training for new employees, annual training sessions for existing employees and other types of safety training, such as active shooter training and other specialized workplace violence prevention trainings that are specific to the business or its location.”
Davis said that contractors should make their position on workplace violence clear through a well-drafted company policy that promotes a safe environment for employees and visitors and details the company’s efforts to maintain a work environment that’s free from violence, harassment, intimidation and other disruptive behavior.
“A sound workplace violence prevention policy should also discuss such important details as how to file an initial report of workplace violence, how complaints will be investigated by the company and how retaliation for making a complaint or participating in an investigation will not be tolerated,” she said.
“The policy should also expressly prohibit weapons in the workplace (in accordance with each state’s laws, as some states may prevent certain restrictions on possessing weapons as it relates to firearms) and include a clearly articulated search policy so that employees understand that what they bring into the workplace—whether physical or electronic—may be subject to search.”
As part of a proactive approach to mitigating the threat of workplace violence, Cambridge said that the creation of a properly trained Rapid Emergency Action Capabilities Team (REACT) is indispensable.
“There are three main goals of a REACT,” she said. “The first is to proactively assess the organization’s conditions, policies and procedures in order to prevent or reduce the chances that a violent situation will occur. The second goal is to quickly react and respond to the threat of violence, and the third goal is to be prepared to handle the aftermath of a tragic situation should it occur.”
“You can call it a ‘threat management team,’ a ‘crisis management team’ or a ‘workplace violence management team’ based on the name that makes the most sense for your company, but this team may be different than a company’s crisis response team, which is trained in reacting to emergency situations and job-related accidents,” Cambridge said.
Ultimately, “it can be extremely costly and dangerous if workplace violence incidents aren’t reported and handled properly, especially at the very beginning,” Cambridge said.
She shared that an incident she was once asked to consult on resulted in a $750,000 cost to the client for legal, security and consulting fees as well as the company’s investment in 24-hour surveillance on a past employee.
“It’s my hope that reports of workplace violence will be addressed expediently and thoroughly, with all threats taken seriously rather than dismissed or chalked up to ‘oh, that’s just the way so-and-so is,’” Davis said. “Reports of violence or aggressive behaviors in the workplace should be promptly investigated and appropriate action should be taken by management, as this will help ensure that issues relevant to workplace violence, including threats, are timely and properly addressed and hopefully prevented in the future,” she said.
Top tips for reducing the threat of workplace violence
Below, experts offered their best advice for minimizing acts of violence on the job
- Take a three-step approach—“While no policy or procedure can guarantee that workplace violence won’t occur, three primary steps can help mitigate the risk,” said Lauren Rayner Davis, senior associate at New York City-based law firm Rottenberg Lipman Rich. “First, supervisors and employees should be trained in how to recognize, avoid or diffuse potentially violent situations by attending personal safety training programs. Second, employees should be trained to alert supervisors to any concerns about safety or security and report all incidents immediately to identified individuals or departments in writing. Third, employees should be encouraged to avoid traveling alone in unfamiliar locations or situations whenever possible and to carry only minimal money and required identification into community settings.”
- Clarify your policy—“Many company policies are vague about who employees should report an actual or potential incident of workplace violence to,” said Carol Cambridge, an authority on workplace violence. “The policy may say that ‘you should report an incident to your supervisor,’ but what if the employee’s regular supervisor is on vacation, it’s the supervisor himself/herself who’s responsible for the workplace violence or the threat occurs after work hours? Also, should employees verbally report or send a text or an email? Companies need to establish and communicate a clear process for employees to report an incident of workplace violence,” she said. “In addition, if the company has an anonymous tip line for reporting concerns or threats, is it monitored regularly? This may be just one of many gaps and vulnerabilities within company policies that can lead many employees to go around the reporting system.”
- Respond and report quickly—“Should a violent incident occur, the company should ensure that prompt medical evaluation and treatment can be received, and thoroughly investigate the incident (by securing all relevant
documents, emails, phone records and/or surveillance video and interviewing any victim(s), the accused and witnesses), and institute corrective action as appropriate,” Davis said. “Employees should be required to report, and Human
Resources and/or supervisors should log, all incidents and threats of workplace violence.”
Potential or actual violent incidents should be promptly reported to local police. Where appropriate, she added, “contractors should also consider offering stress debriefing sessions and post-traumatic counseling services to help workers recover from a violent incident that happened in the workplace.” - Diversify your policy—“If a contracting company has a sizable number of employees for whom English isn’t a first language, they may want to translate their workplace violence policy into whatever language is necessary to accommodate their workers,” Cambridge said.
- Promote company-wide involvement—“Everyone in the company should be responsible for fostering a safety culture and preventing violence,” Cambridge said. “Supervisors and managers across all departments should be trained in de-escalation skills and the signs that are predictive of violence. While human resources plays an important role in the process, they shouldn’t be solely responsible for handling or reducing the threat of workplace violence.”
- Create a positive workplace culture—Davis encourages companies to help prevent workplace violence by maintaining a professional, healthy and caring work environment that minimizes negative feelings, such as isolation, resentment
and hostility among employees.
“This can be fostered by supervisors promoting sincere, open and timely communication among managers, employees and union representatives, offering opportunities for professional development, supporting work-life balance, maintaining confidential, nonjudgmental mechanisms for the expression of complaints and concerns, and enforcing impartial and consistent discipline for employees who conduct themselves improperly,” Davis said. —S.B.
stock.adobe.com / Andrey Popov
About The Author
BLOOM is a 25-year veteran of the lighting and electrical products industry. Reach her at [email protected].
