Early Intervention Prevents Workplace Violence
1/5/2000

An authority on workplace violence said early intervention by managers can help prevent troubled employees from becoming violent, the Boston Globe reported Dec. 19.
According to Lynne McClure, president of McClure Associates Inc., a consulting firm in Phoenix, Ariz., violent incidents at work are "increasing as the violence in our culture escalates."

According to 1998 U.S. Justice Department statistics, each year there are about 2 million violent incidents at work, including 1,000 homicides, 600,000 assaults, 42,000 rapes and sexual assaults, and 23,000 robberies.
McClure, author of "Risky Business," said corporations are now under pressure to prevent workplace violence. She said last year’s U.S. Supreme Court decision in the case of Faragher vs. City of Boca Raton, Fla., means that companies can no longer defend themselves legally by saying they took action when violence broke out. Instead, McClure said, "they must prevent, not just react to, all aspects of a hostile workplace."
Among the employee behaviors that McClure described as risk factors include workers who slams doors or pounds fists rather than discuss a problem; those who takes no responsibility for their actions; those who have no regard for how his or her actions affect the team; workers who say they do one thing but actually do another; workers who have to have things done their way without being open to negotiation or compromise; and workers who suddenly change their usual behavior.