While workplace
violence prevention
efforts have traditionally focused on the role of the human
resources department, there are many aspects of the problem that
can be alleviated by having the proper safety plans and security
procedures in place for a facility itself.
A new report takes the perspective of the
building owner and facility manager while outlining the steps
they can take to help mitigate this problem.
The IFMA Foundation has
released a new report on workplace violence, entitled, “Violence
in the Workplace: The Role of the Facility Manager.”
Written by Wayne D. Veneklasen,
Ph.D., CFM, and Donald W. Barnes Jr., CPP, the report looks at
the history of violence in the workplace, examines the scope of
the problem, describes the statutes surrounding it and concludes
with a focus on planning, response and recovery.
“There is a lot out there on
workplace violence. You read about it all the time. However,
there has been nothing done on what it means for the facility
manager. What can they do if something happens?” said Veneklasen.
“There is no simple answer.
We’re just trying to create
opportunities for people who have a concern and want to do
something about it. Here are some tools. You can assess your own
vulnerability and learn how to write a workplace violence policy
if one doesn’t exist.”
The following is excerpted
from the report:
Workplace violence crosses all
boundaries, including age, race, socio-economic status,
education, religion, sexual orientation, as well as the physical
boundaries of the workplace itself. This destructive behavior
toward another person finds expression in physical assault,
homicide, verbal abuse, bullying, sexual harassment and acts
leading to mental stress.
The size of the business has
no bearing. Workplace violence can happen in international
conglomerates or small businesses.
Once a WPV incident occurs,
the impact on the business itself can be catastrophic. This is
especially true for small businesses. An incident of workplace
violence can occur at anytime of day or night and can include a
range of activities, from agitation and nervous behavior to full
blown, injurious violence.
The painful consequences of
such incidents can have an impact well beyond those workers
directly affected by the incident. WPV has an estimated annual
price tag of $5 billion, annually, in direct and indirect costs
to business owners, building owners and managers, and employees.
Direct costs include personnel replacement and/or retraining
costs, lost production costs, administrative costs and potential
litigation costs.
Indirect costs are highly
variable, but are commonly suggested to be 1.5 to 20 times the
direct costs of medical treatment, wage replacement and
disability pensions.
Although rampage shooting make
the headlines, a more common form of workplace violence is
non-fatal. This includes all behaviors and circumstances that
threaten an employee’s physical safety, including verbal, sexual
or physical assaults, threats, robberies, thefts, coercion,
intimidation, talking and harassment. In recent years, new
evidence has emerged of the impact and harm caused by
non-physical, psychological violence.
If employers who fall under
OSHA regulations do not maintain employee safety, they can be
cited and fined. In the early 1990s, as employers were waking up
to the issue of violence in the workplace, this law was a major
factor cited by legal staff and other employment professionals
to get the resources necessary to begin the process of violence
assessment program development and implementation. Primarily,
problems arise from negligent hiring, retention and failure to
protect the workplace.
Once the workforce is
established, ensure that certain proper security methods are in
place to provide a safe physical work environment. This is where
the facility management organization weighs in via its ability
to define building evacuation routes and contingency plans,
fences, locks, gates, glazing, barriers, safe rooms, building
controls, drawings and a wide variety of additional resources
that is described in further detail in the report.
