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The U.S. Department of Laborestimates that more than 70% of all businesses have no plan to avoid and mitigate the risk of workplace violence.

Risk Managers' Forum

Workplace violence protection

An agent has the responsibility and the resources to mitigate the risk of violence

By Mark Reilly, CIC, CRM, CPCU

Certainly, we have all read or heard the headlines. Some of the more recent high-profile cases include the shootings at the movie theater in Colorado, the attack on the elementary school in Connecticut, and the Gabby Giffords shooting in Arizona. It seems that schools, businesses, and neighborhoods are all susceptible to violence.

Today, every business and every institution has to be prepared. When you look at the Newtown (Sandy Hook) school shooting, you see that they were prepared. They did take steps to protect their students but, in the end, it still resulted in a horrible outcome. Not all schools, however, are prepared. For example, the program director we use for writing school districts indicated that in his 10 years of directing this plan, he has been in just about every school building in Ohio; the only time he was stopped upon entering was to be asked if he needed assistance.

The U.S. Department of Labor estimates that more than 70% of all businesses have no plan to avoid and mitigate the risk of workplace violence. Yet, the numbers pertaining to incidents of violence in the workplace are staggering. OSHA reports that more than 2 million Americans are victimized by workplace violence a year. About 12% of workplace deaths are from violence, and workplace violence is the leading cause of death for female workers in the United States.

For the agent, this is an issue that really has two sides to it. As small business owners, we are susceptible to the reality of workplace violence, but we also have a significant responsibility to assist our clients in making them aware of this risk. We need to teach them how to avoid it, and if they cannot avoid it, ways to mitigate the loss.

Types of workplace violence

There are four major types of workplace violence, described as violent acts directed at a person on duty or at work.

Criminal violence—committed by someone who really has no legitimate relationship with a business. Acts like robbery or trespassing would be examples.

 Co-worker violence—which includes present workers, former workers, or independent contractors with an existing or former relationship with a business, threatening or causing injury to another worker.

Client violence—which includes people who have a legitimate business relationship with a company but who resort to violence during that relationship.

Domestic violence—involving someone who does not have a legitimate relationship with the business but does with one of its workers, such as a spouse, child, or girlfriend/boyfriend.

Common risk factors

Obviously, some of our clients are more susceptible to violence than others. Do you or your clients have some high-profile characteristics? Does your business have a lot of public contact? Is there money on hand, and how is it handled? Are you in a higher crime area or a location that is easy to get away from? Does any part of your business have a high percentage of situations where clients may become disgruntled? Do employees work alone or with few other employees? What are the company's hours of operations; do you open early or close late?

Many companies have to expose themselves to one or more of these risks as a cost of doing business, but it is important to recognize and prepare for them, as well.

How to prevent or minimize workplace violence

You should consider the exposure that you see with the highest likelihood of loss. Once you or your client have identified this, you will want to implement physical and management controls to avoid or minimize the business's chance for a workplace violence incident.

Physical controls would include items like how you handle cash. Is it necessary to handle cash, or can you implement cashless transactions? How is the firm's lighting? Is it conducive to good lines of sight for workers and law enforcement?  Do you limit access with fewer points of entrance, or maintain barriers like bulletproof glass or gates? Does the property—especially the perimeter of the building—have hiding places?

Today, technology can play a very large role in your workplace safety plans. Affordable monitoring equipment as well as electronic entry devices are viable and easy ideas to implement. In addition to monitoring visitors, businesses increasingly have the ability to track employees both in and out of the business.

How can a firm better manage the protection of its staff? First, by paying close attention to staff work schedules. Arrange to have more employees on site during the times when there is more cash in the building. Review workflows for employees who are asked to do jobs outside of the business, from sales to delivery or just simply taking out the trash. Educate the staff on identifying potentially violent situations and how to avoid, control and/or reduce the level of violence at the place of business. Make sure you and your clients have a culture where violence will not be tolerated under any circumstances.

Have a plan in place for medical care and on-the-job counseling to deal with any incidence of violence at your business or your client's business. Many company benefit plans include an Employee Assistance Plan (EAP), and publicizing this and encouraging staff to utilize this service will help dramatically.

The employer's responsibility

The business has a responsibility to provide a safe environment for both the employee and the customer. OSHA has been penalizing companies that do not provide safe workplaces that minimize the workplace violence exposure. In 2012, an Ohio nursing facility was fined rather severely for not anticipating and protecting its employees from violence from their clients.

We are in a time where we cannot tolerate any sign of workplace violence. Health-care and child-care workers for years have been obligated to report signs of violence. We need to be vigilant and encourage staff members to report potential violent situations.

Identify potential violent situations

Employers cannot afford to ignore situations involving a potential for workplace violence. These would include conflicts among clients, co-workers, supervisory staff, and subordinates. Look for noticeable changes in behavior including significant mood swings or growing hostility; also look for substance abuse. Be wary of people who start talking about suicide or rationalizing about other violent behavior. There should be concern with people making threats. Of course, do not allow intimidation, harassment, bullying, or other inappropriate behavior. This type of aggressive behavior has to be addressed, whether it is among co-workers or in employee-customer relationships.

Resources are available

In dealing with the risk of violence in the workplace, there are many resources available, including violence incident reports and violence policies. You can find them on the Web, or from an underwriter of liability and employment-based liability coverages. Two of the sites I have utilized in working with our clients are:

The OSHA Workplace Violence Site (http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/workplaceviolence/otherresources.html)—training resources, prevention tips, and much more

The FEMA Workplace Awareness Training Site (http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/courseOverview.aspx?code=is-106.13)—interactive workplace training courses

These resources help you and your clients map out a strategy to prevent loss. Even if we cannot stop all violent acts from occurring, how can we minimize their impact? And if your business suffers a loss, how can you deal with your staff, address the public, and still do business with clients into the future?

The author

Mark T. Reilly, CIC, CRM, CPCU, is an owner of Diversified Insurance Service, LLC, an independent insurance agency located in northwestern Ohio. Mark has been in the insurance business for 35 years and just recently celebrated his 25th year as an agency owner. He is active as a teacher in the industry on a variety of topics from management seminars to E&O education. For risk management education with the Certified Risk Manager (CRM) program, go to: www.TheNationalAlliance.com.

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