August 2, 2004—A recent follow-up survey by the American Society of Safety Engineers’ (ASSE), a non-profit organization committed to protecting people, property and the environment, found that many companies and organizations in all industries have yet to address the problem of workplace violence.
According to 2002 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics homicides are the third highest cause of on-the-job deaths. Prior to 9/11, where terrorists killed closed to 3,000 workers, workplace violence/homicides were still one of the top causes of on-the-job fatalities.
Concerned about the threat of violence in the workplace the ASSE Risk Management/Insurance Practice Specialty group surveyed ASSE members in 1999 on what was being done to address workplace violence in their workplace. The survey found that although the number of violent incidents in the respondents’ workplaces stayed the same, employees remained concerned and 70 percent of those surveyed said their organization had not undergone a formal risk assessment of the potential for violent acts.
The follow-up survey done this past spring titled “ASSE 2004 Workplace Violence Survey & White Paper” of ASSE members found that, surprisingly, not much had changed. As a matter of fact, in response to a new question included in the benchmark survey asking ‘As a direct result of the 9/11 terrorist attacks or the subsequent anthrax scare, has your organization implemented any of the following established or revised security policy (56 percent said yes); changed emergency procedures (44 percent said yes); increased employee contact, training and discussions on the topic (34 percent said yes); or, made no changes in their organization (18 percent said yes).
Another unexpected finding from the 2004 ASSE survey is that there was no change from the 1999 survey in response to whether respondents’ companies had provided training on how to identify the warning signs of violent behavior 58 percent said yes and 42 percent said no. The 2004 survey also showed that little or no workplace violence training has been provided and there was an increase in the number of respondents from the earlier survey, 74 percent, who said their company had not done a formal risk assessment. In 2004, only one percent of respondents said their company had a written policy addressing violence in the workplace. However, 90 percent of those responding said their company has a policy addressing weapons in the workplace.
Workplace violence includes homicides, physical attacks, rapes, aggravated and other assaults, all forms of harassment and any other act that creates a hostile work environment.
Some of the suggested recommendations contained in the “ASSE Workplace Violence Survey & White Paper” to help employers address workplace violence include:
- Officers and directors—establish a workplace violence prevention policy, upper management must promote a clear antiviolence corporate policy; and, establish and maintain security policies.
- Human resource managers—examine and improve hiring practices; implement prescreening techniques; utilize background checks; encourage employees to report threats or violent behavior; establish termination policies; and, provide post-termination counseling.
- Risk management and safety, health and environmental departments—train all employees in the warning signs of aggressive or violent behavior; train management in threat assessment and de-escalation techniques; conduct a formal workplace violence risk assessment; increase security as needed; develop and communicate a contingency plan to all employees which includes crisis management and media relations; review insurance coverage and verify coverage and exclusions; and, identify a defensive strategy.
A total of 4,560 surveys were mailed in April 2004 to randomly selected ASSE members and 755 surveys were returned, about a 17 percent return rate.
A full copy of the survey, (pdf format) which also includes a list of resources can be found at ASSE.
