Workplace Violence Prevention
Date Posted: 08/02/2016
Workplace violence causes a significant number of deaths and injuries in Washington and throughout the country. In 2010, workplace violence was the third leading cause of workplace deaths in Washington State.
The following provides preventive measures that can be established at your workplace to deal with threatening, intimidating, and/or potentially violent behavior:
Work Environment
The best prevention strategy is to maintain an environment which minimizes negative feelings, such as isolation, resentment, and hostility among employees.
Promote sincere, open, and timely communication among managers and employees
Offer opportunities for professional development
Foster a family-friendly work environment
Maintain mechanisms for complaints and concerns and allow them to be expressed in non-judgmental forums that include timely feedback to the initiator
Promote “quality of life” issues such as facilities and job satisfaction
Maintain impartial and consistent discipline for employees who exhibit improper conduct and poor performance
Security
Maintaining a secure and physically safe workplace is part of any good strategy for preventing workforce violence. Some good practices include:
Designated security personnel to respond to requests for assistance
Employee photo identification badges and coded key cards for access to secure areas
On-site guard services
Appropriate security measures such as metal detectors
Education
Education and communication are critical components of any prevention strategy.
Communicate an awareness program which includes employees, supervisors, and managers regarding all aspects of workforce violence; what is it, what to do when faced with certain problems, employee and management responsibilities, early intervention techniques, and who to call for assistance.
Educate employees and communicating to them techniques designed to effectively deal with conflict resolution and stress
SOURCE: US Department of Labor Workplace Violence Program
Presenter tips
Pre-read the Tool Box Talk. Your comfort level and confidence will be higher if you know your topic.
Discuss related tasks, work areas or events that make the Tool Box Talk relevant to your jobsite.
Involve the workers by asking questions and input that drives discussion.
Questions for discussion
What can we do on this jobsite to make it a safer place to work?
Does your company have a workforce violence prevention policy?
