As difficult as it may be to imagine a violent act taking place at work, in these times it is an eventuality that can not be ignored. Too frequently these days, new leads off with a report about a disgruntled employee committing some horrifying act of violence in the workplace. "Something like that could never happen here", is what most assume. Unfortunately, statistics show that violence can and does happen in the workplace more often than we think. In fact, the chances of violence occurring in the workplace are shockingly high and increasing. Few would argue that over the past ten years, workplace violence has become a serious problem facing workers and employees. Clearly something must be done to help prevent this horrible occurring act.
What is violence in the workplace?
Most people think of violence as a physical assault. However, workplace violence is much a broader problem. It is any act in which a person is abused, threatened, intimidated, or assaulted in his or her employment.
The End of Violence
Grandville : Cent Proverbes
Domestic violence in Spain 1998-2007There are may different things that cause violence in the workplace. Ford (1997), in her research on causes of violence in the workplace, determined that "discharge from one's job provokes many violent acts' and 'conflict between the employee and supervisor can result in more that a screaming match'" (para.4). When these factors come together, the potential for workplace violence becomes a real and present danger. This usually turns into revenge and "there is no sure way to predict human behavior and, while there may be warning signs, there is no specific profile of a potentially dangerous individual" (USDA para.3). As stated before in the definition, there is a physical side and a verbal side of workplace violence. The physical side is when they physically hurt you, most of the time they intend...