Violence in the workplace is a concern of many employers. Much can be done to defuse situations to avoid violence as well.

What is workplace violence? The workplace is any place a worker performs a job, such as an office, hospital, parking lot, private residence or public building. Violence is defined as any act of aggression that causes physical or emotional harm, such as physical assault, verbal abuse, threats and even sexual harassment. Types of assaults include pinching, biting, hitting, grabbing, kicking or being struck by a weapon.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, each year, nearly one million individuals become victims of violent crime while working or on duty. However, statistics do not reflect the “true” rate of workplace violence as incidents of workplace violence often are not reported.

What are the categories of workplace violence? There are four main categories of workplace violence: violence by strangers, violence by customers, violence by coworkers and domestic violence spillover.

Violence by Strangers
Typically, this is seen in robbery situations. An individual enters the workplace with the intent to commit an act and leave. They have no relation to the park district. If your park district deals with large numbers of people and has cash on hand, robbery prevention methods should be taken. Employees should also be trained in what to do in the event of a robbery.

Violence by Customers
Violence by customers can come in the form of person-to-person contact involving physical abuse, abusive language over the telephone, hurtful or embarrassing faxes, and stalking. The park district’s proactive policy can go a long way in preventing more serious incidents of violence in the workplace. Training employees on what is acceptable from a customer, as well as when to terminate a phone call or visit with a customer should be provided upon hire.

Prevention methods are also key to avoiding violence. Various security methods can be implemented such as silent alarms, surveillance cameras, a secure entrance into the building, visibility and lighting just to name a few.

Violence by Coworkers
Although this is the most notable form of this type of violence, it is not the only one. Coworker disagreements, supervisor to employee arguments, sexual harassment and other violent acts fall into this category as well. Problems arise when a coworker makes a cutting remark that is initially ignored or blown off as a joke. Typically before one commits an act of violence, threats of violence are made.

The key in this situation is to get to the root of the problem before it gets worse. Have employees report all incidents of violence, especially threats of violence, to help avoid larger incidents.

Warning signs of a potentially violent individual include, but are not limited to the following: socially isolated, few outside interests from work, blames others for disappointments, disobeys public entity procedures, fascination with weapons, changes in usual behavior, poor work performance, conflicts with others, and has domestic problems.

Domestic Violence Spillover
An employee having domestic problems can get away from the individual perpetrating the violence during working hours, but as long as they keep the same job, the perpetrator knows where to find them. This area is seeing the highest increase of violence in the workplace.

Most employers do not want to address this area of workplace violence because it deals with the personal life of the employee. It is important to remember that once a spouse, former spouse or loved one comes on to public entity property, it is a public entity problem. Something that can be done to avoid a problem in the workplace is to distribute the photo of the individual so that other employees are aware of the situation.

An employer should have an open policy that encourages employees to communicate when problems arise. Preventive steps cannot be taken unless the public entity is aware that a danger exists. Escorts or security guards could be provided for the individual having problems. If possible, the work shift could be altered to avoid a confrontation during the individual’s regular work hours. Employees should also be taught defusing techniques to decrease the potential of a situation escalating into something newsworthy.