We see violence in the news every day. We see it around the world, our country, our cities, and even our neighborhoods. But does violence actually occur in the workplace? Unfortunately, it is happening in the workplace far too often.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) 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. It can affect and involve employees, clients, customers and visitors.” Nearly 2 million American workers have reported being victims of workplace violence. And that doesn’t include the ones that aren’t reported.
Risk Factors for Workplace Violence
OSHA has identified five risk factors for workplace violence. Do you have any of these?
- Exchanging money with the public
- Working with volatile or unstable people
- Working alone or in small groups in isolated areas
- Working in an environment where alcohol is served
- Time of day and location or worksite- such as working late at night or in high crime areas
How to Reduce Workplace Violence
One of the greatest ways employers can reduce workplace violence and protect their most valuable asset (employees) is to implement a zero-tolerance policy towards violence in the workplace. Employers can also periodically assess workplace environments.
OSHA believes a, “Well-written and implemented workplace violence prevention program, combined with engineering controls, administrative controls and training can reduce the incidence of workplace violence in both the private sector and federal workplaces.”.
Some other tips to reduce workplace violence include the following: creating effective lines of communication, encouraging employees to accept/ welcome diversity, prevent minor conflicts from escalating, encourage everybody to report all forms of violent incident. Finally, training your team on how to handle and deal with and prevent the situation is key.
The Orsus Group Advantage
Preventing workplace violence is very important to The Orsus Group. We believe a lot of these tips provided by OSHA and other sources will help you reduce the likelihood of violence in your workplace. However, not even the most thorough and well written violence prevention program can eliminate all the possibility. That’s where we come in. We will further help reduce the likelihood of violence in your workplace by conducting thorough background checks, facilitating training and implementation of effective policies and processes.
“Success is preparing for the challenge that may never come”