Violence in the Workplace Still Number One Security Threat
for Fortune 1000
Corporate Security Managers -- Pinkerton's Annual Security
Survey Also Shows
Concern about Pre-Employment Screening
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Story Filed: Tuesday, April 03, 2001 8:02 AM EST
LOS ANGELES, Apr 3, 2001 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Violence in the
workplace, and
the damaging trauma caused by such events, continues to be
the leading
concern of security managers at America's largest
corporations, according to
"Top Security Threats," a survey of Fortune 1000
companies conducted annually
by Pinkerton, America's leading security firm.
"For three years now, security managers have told us
workplace violence is
their number one security threat. But this year, a related
concern,
pre-employment screening, advanced from fifth to third
place. In a tight
labor market, managers are worried about who they are hiring
and the related
security concerns," said Don W. Walker, president of
Pinkerton, adding,
"Clearly, the threat of employee-generated or
employee-related violence is
causing consternation. This is a wake-up call to all
managers to increase
their awareness of the issues and establish crisis plans in
the event of such
incidents."
Internet/intranet security, including threats posed by
hackers' viruses such
as the "I Love You" Virus, placed second on the
list, for the second year
running. As Walker stated, "The potential for theft of
trade secrets and
customer information, damage to sensitive data and
interruption of commerce
presents unprecedented vulnerability to businesses."
Ranked in order, the study revealed the following "Top
10" issues of greatest
concern to corporate security directors:
1. Workplace Violence
2. Internet/Intranet
Security
3. Employee
Selection/Screening Concerns
4. Fraud/White-Collar Crime
5. Business
Interruption/Disaster Recovery
6. General Employee Theft
7. Hardware/Software Theft
8. Drugs/Alcohol in the
Workplace
9. Unethical Business
Conduct
10. Property Crime (external theft, vandalism)
The annual Pinkerton survey has become the standard in
annual measurement of
Corporate America's thoughts on security. Of the 1,169
questionnaires mailed,
220 were completed, representing a 19% response rate.
Pinkerton's survey results underscore the pervasive nature
of the workplace
violence problem:
-- Each workday, an
estimated 16,400 threats are made, 723
workers are attacked and
43,800 are harassed (Workplace
Violence Research
Institute).
-- More than 1,000 U.S.
workers are victims of homicide at work
each year (OSHA).
-- A study by a major life
insurance company found that one in
four full-time workers
has been harassed, threatened or
attacked, and that
co-workers accounted for most of the
harassment, followed by
customers.
-- Approximately two
million assaults and threats of violence
occur each year in the
workplace (United States Department of
Justice).
-- Estimates suggest that
workplace violence costs U.S.
businesses as much as
$4.2 billion annually.
The Pinkerton "Top Security Threats and Management Issues
Facing Corporate
America" report is available by mail or downloadable
from Pinkerton's Web
site, www.Pinkertons.com. Media can register for download
from the Web site
or request a copy by mail by calling 800/232-7465.
Pinkerton was America's first private investigation firm,
founded in 1850,
and is the leading provider of security solutions, including
uniformed
security officers, consulting and investigations, business
intelligence,
security systems integration and employee selection
services. The company
lists more than 80 percent of the Fortune 1000 as its
clients and has its
U.S. headquarters in Chicago, Illinois. Pinkerton is a
member of the
Securitas Group, which is listed on the Swedish Stock
Exchange. Securitas is
a world leader in security with operations mainly in Europe
and the USA in
Security Services, Security Systems and Cash Handling
Services. Securitas has
annual revenues exceeding $5 billion USD and more than 210,000 employees.