Workplace Violence

Keeping Your Workplace Safe with the Broken Window Theory

27 September in Workplace Violence by admin

The Broken Window Theory, made famous by Rudy Giuliani in his book Leadership, theorizes that maintaining and monitoring urban environments in a well-ordered condition may stop further vandalism and escalation into more serious crime. It was developed by Social Scientists James Q. Wilson and George L. Kelling and was first employed in the New York Transit System when crime was rampant in the system with routine muggings, robberies and assaults. In order to gain control of the system, MTA officers aggressively pursued all criminal activities...

Read More

Two Steps to Reduce Workplace Violence

27 September in Workplace Violence by admin

Organizations assign responsibility for dealing with issues of workplace violence differently. Such responsibility may lie with Operations, Human Resources or perhaps EH&S.  In larger organizations, it is typically the Security Department. Too frequently we find that the program responsibility is shared or may not be assigned to any specific department. No matter where the primary responsibility resides, applying two simple principals will enhance the program’s effectiveness. 1. Assign a Single Point of Program Ownership When companies do not clearly assign workplace violence program ownership, the result is...

Read More

Human Resources Intervention Prevents Workplace Violence

27 September in Workplace Violence by admin

After we hear about sensational cases of workplace violence, we frequently see co-workers and neighbors interviewed on TV, steadfastly testifying to the camera, “He just snapped. I never saw it coming”. More likely, the incident occurred after a long and obvious series of escalation points. We call them pre-incident indicators and almost always precede an incident of workplace violence. Violence obviously can occur in a single unpredictable incident. However, in the vast majority of cases, violence follows a continuum of behavior: Discourteous behavior can evolve into...

Read More

The Realities of Workplace Violence

27 September in Personal Safety, Workplace Violence by admin

We hear a lot about workplace violence involving disgruntled former employees who decide to make a violent strike.  In fact, it’s more common for current employees to act out their anger in the workplace.  Here are some current statistics from The Bureau of Labor Statistics: 43 percent of workplace homicides involve current employees. 22 percent of workplace homicides are committed by former employees. 21 percent of workplace killings involve domestic violence that is carried out at the workplace. 14 percent of workplace killings are committed...

Read More

Steps to an Effective Workplace Violence Prevention Program

06 September in Corporate Security, Security Consulting, Workplace Violence by admin

Workplace violence can occur in any environment—in any size company.  Effective prevention is achieved through a systematic approach to the problem. Defining Workplace Violence At the core of an effective program is a solid definition of what is considered workplace violence. Defining workplace violence gives the company a solid underpinning for actions taken against acts of workplace violence and an effective defense to legal challenges arising from workplace disciplinary actions. Rampart Group recommends defining workplace violence as “any acts of harassment, intimidation, threats or violence”. The Importance of...

Read More