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Workplace Violence: It's All the Rage
Violence is a complex phenomenon that appears to be increasing in the American workplace and wreaking havoc with employees' emotional, psychological,and physical well-being. Perpetrators of on-the-job violence include co-workers (former and current), supervisors, employee family members, and persons who are informally connected, e.g., clients or customers.
Although the form of violence that receives the most "front page" attention is homicide, workplace violence takes many insidious forms that, while not necessarily fatal, can be extremely injurious, nonetheless.
Some examples of behaviors that range from inappropriate to high-risk include:
- Verbal abuse, e.g., offensive, profane, and vulgar language;
- Threats made in person or through letters, phone calls, or e-mail messages;
- Physical assault;
- Intimidating or frightening others;
- Harassing, stalking, or exhibiting undue and unwelcome focus on someone;
- Any actions that result in damaging, destroying or sabotaging property;
- Physically aggressive acts, for example, shaking fists at another person, punching a wall, pounding on a desk, throwing or striking objects, screaming at others, angrily jumping up and down.
- Concealing or brandishing a weapon.
Recent Studies
A study recently conducted by Columbia University for the Postal Service (surveying postal employees as well as nonpostal workers) found that sheds light on aggressive behavior in the workplace.
First the good news: When asked what they found to be most threatening or frightening while on the job, 54% of the 3,000 nonpostal workers surveyed said they had no fears at all. And, according to the study, the chance of being murdered while on the job any job--is just 1 in 130,000 (the majority of these murders are robbery-related crimes).
While workplace homicide is uncommon, some jobs, by definition, carry particular high risks. For example, taxi drivers are five times as likely to be slain on the job as police officers. Another of the study's striking findings: An employee is a lot safer from murderous rage in some blue-collar trades than in banking or just about any other work environment; homicide rates for construction and factory workers are less than one-third the rate for all occupations.
Even though workplace violence resulting in serious injury or death is relatively rare, and, according to many sources is in decline, menacing on-the-job conduct is becoming increasingly widespread. Of those surveyed in the Columbia University study, 5% said they had been physically assaulted at work in the last year: 53% reported attacks in which they had been pushed, hit or kicked; 43% said they had had something thrown at them; and 14% said they had been threatened with a weapon. When asked about on-the-job sexual harassment, 16% said they had been harassed in the last year--most predominantly verbal abuse from lewd comments about the victim s body to unwanted requests for dates.
Another new study on the prevalence and dynamics of workplace violence, commissioned by Integra, a New York-based real estate advisory firm, has findings similar to the Columbia University study. Of the 1,305 workers Integra had surveyed, 42% said yelling and verbal abuse were common in their jobs and 29% acknowledged screaming at co-workers themselves. One in ten said physical violence had occurred in their workplace.
Workplace violence or, as the Integra study calls it, "desk rage," shares common characteristics with its close cousins "road rage" (when stressed drivers lash out at fellow motorists) and "air rage" (when irate passengers lose their cool at 30,000 feet). All three out-of-control behaviors are the unfortunate by-products of trying to cope with modern-day pressures in the outside world while also struggling with inner unresolved conflicts.
Whatever the cause(s), the study found that exposure to even seemingly minor incidences of "desk rage" results in serious health problems for employees, with more than 11% drinking too much alcohol as a means of "trying to cope," 26% resorting to excessive amounts of chocolate, 34% suffering from chronic insomnia, and 16% smoking in extreme.
Warning Signs
Potential or actual violent situations typically escalate if not defused. Knowing what to look for helps. There are three basic levels of violence with corresponding warning signs.
Level One (Early Warning Signs):
The individual:
- Refuses to cooperate with others, even those in authority;
- Spreads rumors and gossip with the intention of harming others;
- Consistently argues with superiors, employees, colleagues and/or clients;
- Constantly swears at others;
- Acts belligerently toward superiors, employees, colleagues and/or clients; and/or
- Makes unwanted sexual comments.
When early warning signs occur, document the offending behavior right after it happens and discreetly report your concerns to a supervisor or other appropriate official. If you are the supervisor schedule a private time and place to meet with the individual in question as soon as possible to discuss the concerns and to remind them of your particular workplace s performance standards and on-the-job behavior policies.
Level Two (Escalation)
The individual:
- Argues increasingly with others at work;
- Refuses to adhere to company policies and procedures;
- Steals and/or sabotages company or a co-worker s property for revenge;
- Verbally expresses wishes to hurt co-workers or management;
- Sends violent sexually suggestive notes to co-workers and/or management; and/or
- Perceives that they are being victimized by the company/business/firm (them against me).
When a situation has escalated to Level Two, document the behavior immediately and notify a supervisor and/or appropriate law enforcement/security officials in your area. If you are confronted by the angry individual try to remain calm, set ground rules or boundaries, all the while speaking slowly, softly and clearly. If you are the supervisor, do whatever you can to diffuse the situation and take necessary disciplinary actions.
Level Three (Heightened Escalation, Usually Resulting in an Emergency Response)
The individual s frequent displays of intense anger result in:
- Recurrent suicidal threats;
- Recurrent physical assaults;
- Destruction of property;
- Engaging weapons to harm others; and/or
- Murder, rape, and/or arson.
Anyone observing violent or threatening behaviors such as the ones listed in Level Three should try to remain calm, secure safety for themselves immediately, and call 911 and/or other appropriate emergency contacts for the facility (e.g., building security).
Performance Problems That May Be Warning Signs of Potential Trouble
In addition to the three levels of indicators detailed above, there are also a number of work-performance problems that can also be warning signs of potential trouble and usually become noticeable as a pattern of marked change from the individual's typical on-the-job behavior.
These warning signs can show up in the behavior of those who eventually become the perpetrators of violence, those who become victims, those who are fearful of violence because they are being threatened, as well as third-party witnesses of on-the-job conflicts.
Recent research into workplace violence indicate that, without exception, at least several of the performance problems listed below are present during the time leading up to an eruption of violent actions:
- Erratic attendance at work
- Increased demands on supervisor s/management s time
- Decreased productivity
- Inconsistent work patterns
- Problems with concentration and focus
- Inappropriate reactions
- Poor health and hygiene
- Evidence of possible drug or alcohol use/abuse
- Evidence of serious stress in personal life
- Continual excuses or blaming
- Unshakable depression
It s important to note that the presence of any of these factors does not necessarily mean a violent act will occur; they may instead be indicators of another type of problem. Seeking professional evaluation can determine both an accurate cause and the most effective intervention.
Intervention--The Earlier the Better
Needless to say, a workplace environment of brewing and/or outbursts of violence adversely affects safety, morale, and productivity. Too often, simply ignoring an co-worker, supervisor, client or customer who exhibits warning signs of potential trouble sends the message that such behaviors are acceptable consequently, it is likely the behaviors will continue or even increase in frequency and severity. It s critical to identify and report the suspect behaviors at the earliest possible moment to prevent the likelihood of a serious incident and to encourage the necessary moves towards protecting co-workers and getting help for the troubled individual.
Co-workers and supervisors should make use of any and all resources available to help in managing conflict and stress that risk leading to violence. Determining the seriousness of a violent or stressful situation and how to best intervene can be most effectively handled by specially trained professionals. Local therapists can be excellent sources of skilled insight as well as assisting with emergency and ongoing stress/anger management.
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