Workplace Violence And The Workplace

There is no standard ‘profile’ of a person who commits workplace violence, and by no means is someone a threat just because they display one of these traits. Employees that exhibit many of these traits, and with increasing intensity, may be a danger and may need some help. Being able to identify these signs and warning signals, and reporting it to management timely can help prevent a workplace violence incident.

This sort of workplace violence gets a large portion of the media space. It happens when a specialist enters the working environment and carries on brutally against an administrator or collaborator. To keep this sort of violence, manager or leaders in the workplace must always search for indications of mental pain, for example, a withdrawal from socialization, an increment in at work unsettling and a decrease in work

Workplace violence includes any incident in which an employee is threatened, intimated, verbally or physically attacked, harassed, injured or killed. Workplace, or occupational violence, as it is sometimes referred to, has and can occur in almost all types of settings, from large to small, private to public and rural to urban. Therefore, there is a demonstrated need for firms of all types, sizes and in all locations to become aware of the seriousness of

Hatred in the work environment breeds various issues for workers. For example, representatives working in a negative situation will probably discover issues with confidence and low profitability. Also, a negative work environment can prompt high representative turnover rates. To build energy in the work environment, workers must to make a positive workplace and do what it takes to maintain and cultivate this culture. According to Yoder-wise (2011), “the definition of violence includes overt and covert behavior ranging from offensive threatening language to homicide” (Yoder Wise, 2011, p.498). Violence can be noted as the general term that represents lateral aggression,

First, it is imperative to understand what horizontal violence, lateral violence, or workplace bullying is to become fully aware of this issue’s extent; these terms are often used interchangeably. A commonality among sources is the description of horizontal violence as “acts of aggression” committed by one coworker against another (Becher & Visovsky, 2012, p. 210). Astonishingly, the range of what is considered horizontal violence is vast, and these aggressive acts are revealed in several forms. Some violence is unmistakable such as threatening, name calling, criticizing, or public humiliation; however, other acts are less obvious such as withholding information, eye rolling, silence, and isolation (Becher & Visovsky, 2012). Still, other violence includes “scapegoating

Workplace violence occurs due to an interpersonal conflict between two or more people that results from differences in their needs, ideas, goals, interests, or values (Marquis and Huston, 2015). Workplace violence is not limited to physical violence; it also includes negative activities such as bulling, verbal abuse, pranking, negative insinuations, gossiping, insubordination, and withholding information (Latham, Ringl, & Hogan, 2013). Research suggests that more than 80 % nurses experience workplace violence at some point in their working careers (Frederick, 2014). New graduate nurses are especially susceptible to workplace violence because they are usually unprepared to deal with it, and they are more likely to leave the profession due to workplace violence (Frederick, 2014). Townsend (2012) reported that 70 % of nurses, who experienced bullying at the workplace, leave their jobs, and 60 % of new graduate nurses quit their jobs within first six months of being bullied (as cited in Marquis & Huston, 2015). Workplace violence is an important leadership issue to address because it affects turnover rates, productivity, patient safety, and overall quality of care (Marquis & Huston, 2015).

Several models and concepts arose in preventative measures to workplace violence in nursing. One conceptual model, according to Covert Crime at Work, is “a conceptual model derived from 370 surveys show working conditions conducive to bullying, thus helping to identify risks early and to prevent unhealthy environments from developing.” After recognition of these research and studies, organizations such as Occupations Safety and Hazard Association, American Nurses Associations, and etc, have implemented guidelines to prevent workplace violence in nursing.

Workplace violence can be considered as “violent acts, threats, physical assault or acts of aggression towards an individual on duty at work (). Violence can also be caused by hostile conduct with the intent to cause emotional or verbal harm. This article focuses on ER nurses experiences with the susceptibility towards violence in the workplace. According to Papa & Venella (2013), nearly 25% of the ER nurses experienced some type of violence from verbal abuse to physical abuse within the last three years (Papa & Venella, 2013). In my opinion, it is very

OSHA Fact Sheet (2012) states “ workplace violence is a violence or the threat of violence against workers” (p.1). Workplace violence causes serious harm to employees or homicide that can lead to deaths. Act in any kind of shapes and forms such as: physical threat, threatening behavior, intention of assault and battery, verbal abuse, beating, stabbing, rape, shooting, being followed, psychological trauma, suicide, treat or obscene phone call/text, intimidation. Workplace violence can happen to anyone, anywhere at or outside the workplace location either during from/to work or from/to client’s traveling temporary or permanent where any work-related duty performances. It is not limited to just employees, but also customers, clients, and invitees. Workplace violence is one of the most concerns for not just employers, but worldwide workers.

A joint effort in to combat this can go a long way in helping to prevent workplace violence. At the end of the day it is in the employers’ best interest to have a workplace that is conducive to a productive work environment in order to get the most out of all their employees. It is also important that all employees feel safe and as if they can go and do their job in a positive environment, because an employee that doesn’t feel safe at work is not going to be a productive one.

The Xerox shooting and the Sheraton stabbing are good examples of such violent episodes. Both incidences exhibited prior evidence of violence in the workplace; and if proper intervention by management was initiated, these tragedies could have been prevented. Therefore, employers need a good workplace violence program to protect their employees as well as their customers.

International Council of Nurses (ICN). (2007). Guidelines on coping with violence in the workplace. Geneva: ICN.

Over all work place violence can be classified as fatal events and nonfatal events; where about 700 people a murdered on the job. There are roughly two million workers a year affected by a form of nonfatal workplace violence, where many have no know knowledge of the individual; there are some that are related to family domestic issues that bleed over into the workforce. (Sahadi, 2015) Many people experience some form of psychological bullying at sometime within their career, according to the bureau of Labor statistics, (2015) there were about 572,000 cases of workplace violence in

Violence in the workplace can happen to anyone at anytime, anywhere that is possible. Everyone is not safe from workplace violence, which is why we need to identify and prevent this from happening. Violence can cause a significant amount of fatalities and injuries throughout the entire United Sates. Nearly 2 million Americans are affected by assaults and violent acts by people in the workplace. Workplace Violence could also damage someone’s trust and the sense of security while working with others in the workplace. The problem of workplace violence is that it is growing and the employers and employees a very much concerned about it.

Workplace violence is a serious and growing issue in society. Employers need to develop intervention strategies to decrease reduce violence in the workplace. Also, employers and employees need to be aware of the signs when people exhibit behaviors that can lead to workplace violence. As a society, the issue needs to be acknowledged of the reality and work together for creating a solution. Lastly, employers and employees must not live in fear of addressing concerns if they see the potential for workplace violence or report when they witness or experience workplace violence.