# Presentation: 067425

## WORKPLACE VIOLENCEPrevention and Response

- Based on the Handbook Workplace Violence Prevention and Response
- By U. S. Department of Agriculture
- October, 2001

## What This Course Will Cover

- What is Workplace Violence?
- Responsibilities
- Prevention of Workplace Violence
- Identifying Potentially Violent Situations
- Responding to Violent Incidents
- Disclosure of Information

## What is Workplace Violence?

- Any act of violence, against persons or property, threats, intimidation, harassment, or other inappropriate, disruptive behavior that causes fear for personal safety at the work site.
- Workplace violence can affect or involve employees, visitors, contractors, and other non-Federal employees.

## What Can CauseWorkplace Violence?

- Work Related
- Anger over disciplinary actions
- Loss of a job
- Resistance to policies
- Disagreement
- Stress

- Non-Work Related
- Domestic violence
- Road rage
- Hate incidents or crime
- Stress

## Who Can Inflict Workplace Violence?

- Abusive employee
- Manager
- Supervisor
- Co-worker

- Customer
- Family member
- Stranger

## 	Whatever the cause or whoever the perpetrator, workplace violence is not to be accepted or tolerated.

## Employees Responsibilities

**“****It is up to each employee to help make USDA a safe workplace for all of us”**
- Be familiar with Department/Agency policy
- Be responsible for securing their own workplace
- Question and/or report strangers to supervisors
- Be aware of any threats, physical or verbal, and/or any disruptive behavior

## Employee Responsibilities cont.

- Be familiar with local procedures for dealing with threats and emergencies
- Do not confront individuals who are a threat
- Be familiar with the resources of the Employee Assistance Program
- Take all threats seriously

## Supervisors Responsibilities

- Inform employees of Department policies and procedures
- Ensure that employees know specific procedures for dealing with threats and emergencies, and how to contact police, fire, and other safety and security officials.
- Ensure that employees with special needs are aware of emergency evacuation procedures and have assistance.

## Supervisors Responsibilities Cont.

- Respond to potential threats and escalating situations by utilizing proper resources from: law enforcement, medical services, Federal Protective Service, human resources staff, and the Employee Assistance Program
- Take all threats seriously
- Check prospective employees’ backgrounds prior to hiring

## Security/Facilities StaffResponsibilities

- Security/Facilities StaffResponsibilities

- Serve as the liaison with law enforcement
- Conduct regular threat assessment surveys of the facility
- Keep management advised of the risk of violence, and the means to close security gaps
- Work with facility personnel to improve the security level of the buildings, grounds, parking lots, etc.

## Prevention ofWorkplace Violence

-    **A sound prevention plan is the most important and, in the long run, the least costly portion of any agency’s workplace violence program.  The following programs will assist in prevention:**
- Pre-Employment Screening
- Security
- Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)
- Threat Assessment Team
- Agency Work and Family Life Programs

## Pre-Employment Screening

-    An agency should determine, with the assistance of its servicing personnel and legal offices, the pre-employment screening techniques.  Techniques may include:
- Interview questions
- Background and reference checks
- Drug testing (if appropriate for the position under consideration and consistent with Federal laws and regulations).

## Security

-    Maintaining a safe work place is part of any good prevention program.  There are a variety of ways to help ensure safety.  Some security measures include:
- Employee photo identification badges
- Guard services
- Individual coded key cards for access to buildings and grounds

## Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)

-    This program is most effective in resolving disputes when a conflict has been identified early and one of the following techniques is used:
- Ombudspersons
- Facilitation
- Mediation
- Interest-based problem solving
- Peer review

## Threat Assessment Team

-    This interdisciplinary team will work with management to assess the potential for workplace violence and, as appropriate, develop and execute a plan to address it.

## Agency Work and Family Life Programs

-    An agency should identify and modify, if possible, self-imposed policies and procedures which cause negative effects on the workplace climate.  Examples include:
- Flexi-place
- Child care
- Maxi-flex

## Awareness/Training

-    One of the most critical components of any agency’s prevention program is training.
-     All employees should know how to recognize and report incidents of violent, intimidating, threatening, and disruptive behavior.
-     All employees should have phone numbers for quick reference during a crisis or an emergency.

## Awareness/Training

-    In addition, workplace violence prevention training for employees should include the following topics:
- Agency’s workplace violence policy
- Encouragement to report incidents & procedures to do so.
- Ways of preventing or defusing volatile situations or aggressive behavior.
- Diversity training to promote understanding & acceptance of co-workers and customers from different races, sexes, religions, abilities, ethnic backgrounds and sexual orientations.

## Awareness/Training

- Ways to deal with hostile persons.
- Managing anger.
- Techniques and skills to resolve conflicts.
- Stress management, relaxation techniques, wellness training.
- Security procedures such as location and operation of safety devices such as alarm systems.
- Personal security measures.
- Programs operating within the agency that can assist employees in resolving conflicts such as EAP & ADR.

## Awareness/Training

-     In addition to the training suggested for employees, special attention should be paid to general supervisory training.  It is important that supervisory training include basic leadership skills such as:
- Setting clear standards
- Addressing employee problems promptly.
- Using the probationary period, performance counseling, discipline, and other management tools conscientiously.

## Awareness/Training

-     Other areas that should be included in supervisory training are:
- Ways to encourage employees to report incidents.
- Skills in behaving compassionately and supportively.
- Skills in taking disciplinary actions.
- Basic skills in handling crisis situations.
- Basic emergency procedures.
- Appropriate screening of pre-employment references.
- Basic skills in conflict resolution.

## Threat Assessment

-      Determining the seriousness of a potentially violent or stressful situation and how to best intervene is the basis of a threat assessment.
-     The agency should always treat threats in a serious manner and act as though the person may carry out the threat.
-     The purpose of the threat assessment team is to provide guidance on managing the situation in a way that protects the employees.

## Threat Assessment Team Members

- Typically include:
- Management
- Employee Relations
- Employee Assistance Program
- Law Enforcement, and/or Security

-     May also include representatives from:
- Civil Rights/EEO
- Safety and Health Management Office
- Unions, where applicable
- Office of the General Counsel
- Office of Inspector General
- Conflict Resolution Office

## Emergency Plans

-    The plan should be specific to the type of facility, building, and the workers it covers, and should describe:

- Calling for help
- Calling for medical assistance
- Emergency escape procedures & routes
- Safe places to escape
- Accounting for all employees when evacuating
- Procedures to secure the work area where the incident took place
- Procedures for accounting for all employees
- Training & educating employees
- Procedures for regularly evaluating & updating plan
- Procedures for debriefing participants

## Alternative Dispute Resolution(ADR)

- Designed to help parties resolve conflicts with a neutral third party.
- Some ADR processes include facilitation, conciliation, mediation, and ombudsperson programs.

## Mediator

- Trained in listening and communicating
- Can defuse tensions, and clear up misunderstandings
- Creates a safe setting for open communication
- Provides for improved relations and communications for the future

## Ombudsperson

- “Eyes and ears” of the highest level of an organization
- Listens, investigates, and recommends solutions to problems
- Listens to complaints or grievances about the organization

## Considerations for Using ADR

- Parties are so committed to their views that progress is stuck
- Communication styles between disputing parties require third-party assistance
- You want to resolve a dispute but do not want to file a formal complaint
- You want to resolve your conflict quickly

## ADR may not be appropriate when the parties are so hostile toward each other that sitting down together might be unsafe.

## Employee Assistance Program(EAP)

- Each agency has a confidential EAP with trained counselors who can address workplace stress and violence issues.
- EAP is also required to help employees deal with alcoholism or drug abuse and other problems, such as, marital or financial.

## Identifying PotentiallyViolent Signs

- Intimidating
- Harassing
- Bullying
- Numerous conflicts with customers, co-workers, or supervisors
- Substance abuse
- Statements contemplating suicide

- Belligerent
- Aggressive behavior
- Carrying a weapon
- Inappropriate references to guns or threats
- Extreme changes in normal behaviors

## If you notice violent signs,you should:

- If you are a co-worker: notify the employee’s supervisor
- If it is a customer: notify your supervisor
- If it is your subordinate: evaluate the situation by taking into consideration what may be causing the problems
- If it is your supervisor: notify that person’s manager

## External Threats

-    Employees should be aware of external threats from organizations or the public.  The following are some types of external threats:
- Domestic Terrorist Groups
- Special Interest Groups
- General Public
- Permittees/Contractors

## It is very important to respond appropriately, i.e., not to overreact but also not to ignore a situation.

## Responding to Violent Incidents

- Occupant Emergency Plan
- Emergency Response Team
- Plans and Procedures for Recovering From a Workplace Violence Emergency
- Evaluation

## Occupant Emergency Plan

- Refer to the phone numbers of security, police, and medical service in your facility occupant emergency plan
- If you do not have a copy of the plan for your facility contact your supervisor

## Emergency Response Team

- Their purpose is to deal with the actual violent situation and its aftermath as well as to take steps to prevent similar future occurrences.

## Plans and Proceduresfor Recovering

- Agencies must be prepared to:
- Deal with the situation
- Help in the healing process
- Get the workforce back to productivity
- Employees experience three stages of “crisis reactions”

## Stage One:Emotional Reactions

- Shock
- Disbelief
- Denial
- Numbness

- Increasing heart rate
- Perceptual senses become heightened or distorted
- Adrenaline levels increase

## Stage Two:“Impact stage”

- Anger
- Rage
- Fear
- Terror
- Depression
- Withdrawal

- Grief
- Sorrow
- Confusion
- Helplessness
- Guilt

## Stage Three:“Reconciliation stage”

- Employee tried to make sense out of the event
- Understand its impact
- Through trial and error, reach closure of the event so it doesn’t interfere with his or her ability to function and grow
- Long-term process

## Evaluation

- Determine if everything was done that could have been done
- What can be done to prevent it from happening again
- Threat assessment and emergency response teams should be part of this process.

## Disclosure of Information

- Threat Assessment Team
- Critical Incident Stress Debriefing
- Dealing With the Media

## Threat Assessment Team

- Information will be released to individuals needing the information in order to conduct an appropriate investigation into the situation, protect agency personnel, or confront the person making the threat.

## Critical Incident Stress Debriefing

- This type of debriefing allows the employees a chance to:
-  Recover from severe stress
- Talk about what they have gone through
- Compare their reactions with those of others.

## Dealing With the Media

- Questions from the news media relating to incidents of workplace violence should be forwarded to the appropriate public affairs staff for your office.

## Conclusion

-     For additional information regarding preventing workplace violence, please review REE Policy & Procedure 122.1 found at the following website:
-     _[http://www.afm.ars.usda.gov/ppweb/](http://www.afm.ars.usda.gov/ppweb/)_

- _[Take The Quiz](http://www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/Place/54400000/quiz/wkvio.htm)_