Workplace Violence - Essay Example

Workplace Violence Introduction Workplace violence may be defined as "violence or the threat of violence against workers which can occur at or outside the workplace and can range from threats and verbal abuse to physical assaults and homicide" (OSHA, 2002). Any behaviour that can cause injury or impedement in the normal course of work, cause damage to the property or make customers, managers or workers fear for their safety is included under workplace violence. The behaviours are either aggressive, disruptive, emotionally abusive or hostile and create an atmosphere of distrust impacting the morale and productivity of the unit (ASIS, 2005). Workplace violence is a growing concern for employers and employees all over the world (OSHA, 2002). People at risk for workplace violence Though any worker can be subjected to workplace violence, some occupations place certain individuals at increased risk of violence. Workers who deal with money, who deliver goods, passengers or services, those who work alone or work with small groups, workers who work late in the nights or early hours in the morning are at increased risk of workplace violence. Others at risk are those who work in areas with high crime rates, in community settings and in health care and social services. Psychiatric evaluators, nurses, water utility employees, TV cable installers, letter carriers, taxi drivers, retail workers and probation officers are also at risk for violence (OSHA, 2002). Types of workplace violence According to the FBI (2002), there are basically four types of workplace violence. They are: 1. Type 1: Violence by criminals who are not associated with the workplace, but enter the workplace with intentions of robbery or any other such crime. This type of violence accounts for about 80% of workplace homicides. Taxi drivers and late-night retailers are at increased risk of this type of violence. The motive in this type of incidents is usually theft and in many cases the criminal will be carrying dangerous weapons like gun. 2. Type- 2: Violence by the receivers of service against the service providers. Examples of this type of violence are violence against doctors or nurses by the patients, violence against teachers by the students and violence by the customers against the retailers. Even police officers, security guards, correctional officers and mental health workers are at risk of this type of assault. The largest number of victims facing this type of violent behavior are those in healthcare services. 3. Type-3: Worker-on-worker violence: In this type of violence an employee or an ex-employee assaults the manager, supervisor or coworker of the institution. 4. Type- 4: Violence stemming from a personal relationship: The violence is committed by an individual who has no direct association with the workplace but is personally related to one of the workers either through marriage or any other domestic relationship. Measuring workplace violence The most common type of incidents in workplace violence is non-fatal incidents like threats and minor injuries (ASIS, 2005). Infact, homicides are very rare (ASIS, 2005). Homicides actually occur in industries which are at risk for type-1 workplace violence. The knowledge on the scale and extent of workplace is limited owing to an inconsistent system of data collection and definitions (ASIS, 2005). Also, data pertaining to the smaller degrees of workplace violence are sparse. There is also not much data on the effect of this type of violence on economic and human costs. Study by ASIS (2005) revealed that average mean cost per homicide due to workplace violence is about $800,000. There is no data on the costs that occur in other types of violence. Because of these feeble data, effectiveness of known interventions is unrecognized (ASIS, 2005). Legal issues in workplace violence Workplace violence is gaining importance in legal circles too. There are 2 types of legal issues associated with this type of violence: 1. Employer responsibility to prevent violence: Legally, it is binding on the employer to protect employees, customers and other people visiting the workplace from preventable harm (ASIS, 2005). This arises out of the occupational health and safety statues both at the federal and at state level and also from common law precedents from litigated cases all over the country (ASIS, 2005). 2. Employer responsibility to manage workplace incidents decently: Each and every employer is obliged to respect the rights of every employee during any process which might be either investigative or disciplinary, stemming from a workplace violence incident (ASIS, 2005). Prevention of workplace violence Employers must adopt a zero tolerance policy towards workplace violence either against or by their employees (CDC, 1996). This can be done by establishing a workplace violence prevention program or incorporating information regarding workplace violence into the already existing accident prevention program, manual of standard operating procedures or employee handbook. The employer must make sure that all the employees of the company are aware of the terms and conditions of the policy. All claims of any workplace violence must be interrogated, investigated and remedied thoroughly and promptly. All employees must be educated about safety norms and what type of conduct is not acceptable (CDC, 1996). They must be advised not to travel alone in unfamiliar locations and situations. They must carry required identification and only minimal amount of money while entering community settings (OSHA, 2002). High-risk occupational workers must be identified and provided with adequate physical security measures, employee training and also certain special employer policies (FBI, 2002). In type-3 and type-4 violence cases, some warning signs may appear before the actual assault. Perception of these signs may help take measures to prevent the crime (FBI, 2002). Employers must have a supporting attitude and not a punishing attitude towards victims of violence. They must respect their employees and create a climate of trust between the workers and the management. Employers must be ready to seek advice and help from outside resources like psychiatrists, law enforcement, threat assessment psychologists and social service agencies as and when required (FBI, 2002). Whose concern is domestic violence? Workplace violence affects the whole society (ANA, 2009). The economic cost cause by this assault is substantial and intangible. The violence creates ripples which go beyond the actual damage caused to the victim. It damages the community, trust and sense of security of other workers too (ANA, 2009). All employers have an ethical and legal obligation to provide a safe environment at work place which is free of violence, assaults and threats (FBI, 2002). Damages caused by workplace violence Workplace violence can cause loss of work time, damage of the morale of the employees, decreased productivity, increased compensation payments of the workers, medical expenditure, expenses of the lawsuits and liability (FBI, 2002). Management of workplace violence All employees must be encouraged to report and also log all threats and incidents related to workplace violence. After the incident, prompt medical evaluation and treatment must be provided. The local police also must be informed immediately. The circumstances of the incident must be discussed with the staff members and employees must be encouraged to share information about ways to avoid repetition of similar situations in future. Victims of the incident must be offered stress debriefing sessions and also post-traumatic counseling. All the threats and incidents must be investigated and the trends in the violent incidents must be monitored regarding circumstances or type and measures for corrective actions must be taken. Any changes in the program must be discussed with the employees during meetings (OSHA, 2002). Multidisciplinary approach is the best method to manage workplace violence (ASIS, 2005). This is because; workplace violence touches all aspects of organizational chart like employment law, behaviour, management, human resources and security (ASIS, 2005). Hence it is not easy to allocate the responsibility of handling workplace violence incidents to one particular department. That is why, the best approach is multidisciplinary approach where in responsibilities are drawn in from different parts of management structure with different perspectives, tasks, skills and areas of knowledge (ASIS, 2005). Key stake holders in the management of workplace violence Workplace violence issues are mainly addressed by 3 groups of people in any organization. They are security, human resources and legal department. Other stakeholders include business owners, executive level managers, occupation safety and health personnel, union leaders, employee assistance programs, public relations, corporate communications and risk management and crisis professionals. 1. Security: Security personnel are the first persons to be contacted after an incident of domestic violence has occurred. In larger organizations, a security manager may be present who is responsible for all activities related to security and threat. However, in smaller organizations, this role is taken up by the owners or other members of the organization. Security personnel are the best source of practical expertise as far as onsite physical security, incident management techniques, risk screening, background investigations and intervention with law enforcement are concerned. Most of the times, security personnel draw up a workplace violence program which incorporates certain components like implementation of physical security, screening of employee background and investigation of potential violence. During a workplace incident, the security personnel will play an instrumental role in securing and controlling the worksite. They may also be involved in the defusement and containment of threatening situations until the arrival of police. Security personnel can also provide assistance to law enforcement officers dealing with the incident. (ASIS, 2005) 2. Human resources: Personnel from this department play an important role in the prevention and response to workplace violence. This occurs because of their relations with employees. In larger companies, human resources department people will have a leadership role in the prevention and response to workplace violence. The personnel will handle policies, procedures, practices, training and also enforcement of policies. These individuals can play a major role in negotiating with labor representatives. Because of the experience these individuals have in investigating violation of workplace policies, they are in a position to strike the correct balance between competing interests like confidentiality and thoroughness (ASIS, 2005). 3. Legal department: This department is essential not only to help the organization to meet legal obligations but also to safeguard the organization from legal liability. This department also helps the security and human resources to develop legal practices, policies and procedures related to violence prevention. Conclusion Workplace violence is a major public health hazard which is soaring at alarming rates. The incident can be as simple as threat to as complicated as homicide. Every employer must strive to prevent workplace violence. This can be done by having proper policies in place and by implementing appropriate programs concerned to workplace violence. Every organization must be prepared to respond appropriately to any untoward incident at workplace. It the duty of every employer to create a safe environment to each and every employee, client and customer dealing with the organization. References ASIS. (2005). Workplace violence prevention and response guideline. Retrieved on May 27, 2009 from http://74.125.153.132/search?q=cache:vneXEK01tyIJ:www.asisonline.org/guidelines/guidelineswpvfinal.pdf+workplace+violence&cd=9&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=in ANA. (2009). Workplace Violence. Retrieved on May 27, 2009 from http://www.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/ANAPoliticalPower/State/StateLegislativeAgenda/WorkplaceViolence.aspx CDC. (1996). Violence in the Workplace. Retrieved on May 27, 2009 from http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/violcont.html FBI. (2002). Workplace Violence. US Department of Justice. Retrieved on May 27, 2009 from http://www.fbi.gov/publications/violence.pdf OSHA. (2002). Workplace Violence. US Department of Labor. Retrieved on May 27, 2009 from http://74.125.153.132/search?q=cache:YqRF8I6h95UJ:www.osha.gov/OshDoc/data_General_Facts/factsheet-workplace violence.pdf+workplace+violence&cd=20&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=in Read More