Workplace violence

Epidemiology

According to data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2011 violence and other injuries caused by persons or animals contributed to 17% of all US occupational fatalities, with homicides contributing to 10% of the total. From 1992 to 2010, there were 13,827 reported workplace homicide victims, averaging over 700 victims per year, in the United States. Examination of the 2011 data shows that while a majority of workplace fatalities occurred to males, workplace violence disproportionately affects females. Homicides contributed to 21% of all occupational fatalities for women, compared to 9% for men. Of these homicides, relatives or domestic partners contributed to 39% of female homicide cases; male homicide cases were most likely to be perpetrated by robbers, contributing to 36% of male homicide cases.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration ("OSHA") a department of the United States Department of Labor defines workplace violence as "any act or threat of physical violence, harassment, intimidation, or other threatening disruptive behavior that occurs at the work site. It ranges from threats and verbal abuse to physical assaults and even homicide."

2,000,000 US workers per year report workplace violence

Most cases of workplace violence are non-fatal. From 1993 to 1999, an average of about 1.7 million people reported occupational violence. About 75% of these cases are considered simple assault, while 19% of cases are considered aggravated assault.

Workplace violence is at epidemic proportions. "There used to be a time when an employee shooting someone in the workplace would be a shock. Now it's becoming common," states Kathleen M. Bonczyk, Esq. a researcher and expert on workplace violence prevention.

Following a June 2017 shooting spree when a former employee returned to his Orlando, Florida workplace to murder five co-workers before committing suicide Kathleen M. Bonczyk, Esq. stated "You hear it again and again. People always say 'We didn't think it (workplace violence) would happen here,' but it can happen anywhere and anytime. It shouldn't be a question of if; employers should operate under the question of when."

There are four categories used to classify workplace violence: worker on worker, personal relationship, customer/client, and criminal intent. Worker on worker violence occurs when two people of the same occupation are violent towards one another, either physically, verbally or emotionally. A common example of this is when one worker has some sort of authority over another, such as a supervisor position over a supervisee. Personal relationship violence at the workplace occurs when an employee's personal relationship is brought into the workplace and causes disruption for the employee, his/her co-workers, and possibly the customers of that business. Victims of personal relationship violence are typically women. Customer/client violence occurs when there is violence between a customer or client of a workplace and an employee. The violence could be performed by the customer onto the employee or vice versa. Finally, criminal intent violence in the workplace occurs when there is no relationship between the person committing the violent act and the workplace or its employees.

The four categories listed above are further classified into three levels, depending on the situation. Level one includes signs such as the person bullying others, being rude or abusive, and uncooperative. At this level, one should carefully take note of the behaviors and report them to a supervisor. The supervisor may want to meet with the potential perpetrator to discuss his/her behaviors. Level two includes the potentially violent subject stating that he feels victimized and verbalizing threats, verbalizing wanting to hurt others, frequently arguing with others, seeking revenge, and refusing to follow workplace policies. In response to this behavior one should document observed behaviors, directly contact a supervisor, ensure that one's own safety is put first, and, if needed, contact first responders. The third level of workplace violence are currently violent situations such as threatening to harm one's self or others by either physical means or using weapons, demonstration of extreme anger, or destruction of property. In case of level three violence, one should ensure the safety of themselves followed by the safety of others, stay calm, cooperate with law enforcement, and leave the situation if possible.

In the case of personal relationship violence, it is often hard to recognize levels one and two of violence because they typically occur outside of the workplace. Most personal relationship violence situations occur at level three, in which case the level three approach for handling the situation should be in place.

Perline and Goldschmidt contend that the present definitions of workplace violence are simply descriptive and not based on motivation of the perpetrator. Understanding the motivation underlying these crimes is important in developing preventative strategies. Perline & Goldschmidt define two types of workplace violence: 1) Object-focused workplace violence is violence that occurs to obtain some object, such as money, drugs, jewelry, etc., and 2) non-object-focused violence, which is emotionally based, and mostly associated with anger. Anger generally requires frustration and perceived injustice. Mitigating anger or perceived injustice will mitigate or prevent a violent episode, and people can be angry without perpetrating violence. Whether or not anger results in violence depends, in part, on the potential perpetrator's focus, and associated risk factors (see below). Eight different types of focus that can result in workplace violence have been identified. (Table 1)

The anger-focus model: 1) characterizes workplace violence according to the focus of the perpetrator; 2) allows for the gathering of separate statistics for object-focused crime and non-object-focused crime; and 3) shows that domestic violence, school shootings, terrorist activities, and non-object violence that occurs in the workplace are similarly motivated. Consequently, understanding the factors driving one type of non-object-focused violence should help us to develop strategies for mitigating the other types of non-object-focused violence. Thus, we can see that these crimes can be mitigated by reducing the frustration level of the potential perpetrator, reducing the level of the potential perpetrator's perceived injustice, or changing the focus the potential perpetrator to a more healthy focus.

A very large percentage of non-object-focused perpetrators are either arrested, killed by police, or killed themselves after committing their violent act. If we consider suicide-by-cop, it has been suggested that somewhere between 25–50 percent of non-object-focused workplace homicides result in suicide. Suicide is virtually unheard of following an object-focused crime, it just doesn't make sense. Non-object-focused workplace violence is purposeful, occurs in stages, and is seldom if ever a spontaneous event.

The five stages of non-object-focused violence that have been identified are:

• Anger
• Focus
• Pre-violence: fantasy, rehearsal, preparation, victim denigration and threat
• Violence: toward self, toward others, toward self & others, and toward environment
• Post-violence: resolution, and consequences.

Thirty risk factors have been identified. Fourteen of these risk factors are social & situational; twelve are psychological, and four are behavioral.

Signs of potential threats

There is little information on what certainly causes workplace violence, however it is agreed that a combination of personal factors, workplace factors, and individual interactions contribute to violence in the workplace. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) recognizes the following behaviors as warning signs for potential perpetrators of workplace violence:

• decreased productivity or inconsistent work performance
• damage or destruction of company property
• obsession with weapons
• poor workplace relationships
• obsessive involvement with the job
• repeated direct or veiled threats
• increased mood swings
• paranoid, aggressive behavior
• interest in recently publicized violent events
• unwanted romantic interest in a co-worker
• refusal to accept criticism
• overreaction to company policies

The National Safety Council also recognizes excessive use of drugs or alcohol as well as absenteeism, or change in job performance that is unexplained. Paying attention to these warning signs and reporting them may help prevent events of workplace violence.

Global View

Workplace violence does not currently have a universal definition. The International Labor Organization (ILO) conducted a study of 80 different countries. In 40 of those countries the words used for work related violence, include both physical and psychological. In 4 of those countries work related violence only includes physical conduct. In 16 countries the terms used are very vague and do not clarify if is referring to physical or psychological conduct. Due to different countries having different views, there is not a universal definition for workplace violence. The Lloyd’s Register foundation conducted a survey in 2021 to depict a global view of workplace violence. This survey was based on 125,000 interviews that was conducted in 121 countries. According to this survey, 22.8 percent of the world has experienced violence and harassment at work. The survey divided workplace violence and harassment into 3 categories: physical, psychological, and sexual. The Americas had a prevalence rate of 34.3 percent. The next highest was Africa with 25.7 percent. Third was Europe and Central Asia with 25.5 percent. In America women were more likely to face violence at work by 8.2 percent. In Europe and Central Asia women were 8 percent more likely. In Africa, men were more likely to experience workplace violence by 2.2 percent.

The first category of workplace violence that the survey covered was physical. Physical violence includes, but not limited to, hitting, pushing, and spitting. Worldwide 8.5 percent of people have experienced physical violence in the workplace. Africa registered the highest prevalence to this at 12.5 percent. Americas was number 2 at 9 percent. Asia and the Pacific had 7.9 percent. In Asia, Africa, Europe, and central Asia men were more at risk compared to women. However, in Arab states and the Americas, women were more at risk then men.

The second category of work place violence was psychological. Psychological violence would include, but not limited to, threats, intimidation, and insults. Globally 17.9 percent of people have experienced psychological violence in the workplace. The Americas had the highest prevalence when it came to psychological violence at 29.3 percent. Africa had a prevalence percentage of 20.2 percent. The lowest was the Arab states which had 11.4 percent. In Europe and Central Asia psychological violence was reported 5 percent more in woman than in men. In Arab States women were 4.3 percent more likely. On the other hand, in Africa Men reported higher rates of psychological violence by 2.3 percent.

The third and final category that the survey covered was sexual harassment. Sexual harassment would include, but not limited to, inappropriate touching, inappropriate sexual gestures, and sharing sexually inappropriate images or videos. Globally 6.2 percent of people experienced sexual harassment in the workplace. The Americas had the highest prevalence of sexual harassment at 11.8 percent. This is compared to a little more than 5 percent on average for all the other regions. In America nearly 2 in 10 women reported experiencing sexual harassment in contrast with one in ten men experiencing it. In Europe and Central Asia women were just under 7 percent more likely to experience sexual harassment. The International Labor Organization (ILO) has initiated multiple programs and regulations to help decrease the effect of workplace violence worldwide.

Prevention

The United States Department of Labor's purpose is to " promote a safe environment for our employees and the visiting public, and to work with our employees to maintain a work environment that is free from violence, harassment, intimidation, and other disruptive behavior". Hemati-Esmaeili (2018) supports," As worksites for healthcare providers and related occupations vary in purpose, size, and complexity, WVPP should be designed to specifically target the unique nature and varied needs of each organization” (par. 5) Therefore, the DOL has provided information in order to work towards their purpose of keeping the workplace safe for individuals. The information is provided in order to help the people of the workplace to be able to identify potentially harmful behaviors as well as recognize their responsibilities to prevent violent behavior. The DOL administered the Workplace violence program in order to help employees respond to and prevent workplace violence through better understanding. They have also identified seven key factors to help prevent workplace violence:

1. Work Environment- As the work environment directly and heavily influences the employees and clients, it is crucial that the environment remains positive and open. This encourages better communication and positive attitudes in the workplace.
2. Security- Additional safety measures such as security may help deter possible violent events from occurring. This could include security guards, cameras, or other technological machines such as metal detectors.
3. Education- educating employees on current policies and procures as well as on possible warning signs of workplace violence.
4. Performance / conduct indicators- ways to be aware of changes in employee behavior, such as absenteeism or change in performance.
5. Employee support services- services available for employees to express concerns
6. Early intervention- not letting symptoms go unnoticed or unresolved
7. Take appropriate actions- notify authorities when needed

It is also recommended that employers treat terminated employees with respect in order to avoid the feeling that they are being victimized. Additional precautions may be alerting security that there will be job termination that day.

Responses

According to the Department of Homeland Security in the situation of workplace violence, while staying calm, one should run, hide, or fight. It is suggested to only fight if there are no other safe options. In the event of having to handle a violent or potentially violent person, there are five steps to follow. First demonstrate concern for the employee and show that you care. Second, do not judge the person, but observe their behaviors. Third is to demonstrate empathy. Fourth is to engage in conversation with them, let them express what will help them. Finally, work with them to create a solution that will not put anyone at risk.