This can be compounded by legal liability managers may face if shown they did not provide adequate precautions. Prevention policies should state clearly that violent talk, jokes or acts will not be tolerated. Employers should ban weapons in the workplace, in the company parking lot or on any other business property. The policy should emphasize that any violent behavior must be reported immediately and that the company should immediately investigate all reports of violent threats, abuse or behavior. Appropriate disciplinary action against employees violating the policy should be taken.
Violence prevention begins as early as employee screening and hiring.
Employers should learn to recognize the dangerous employee profile. Though one must be careful about generalizations, experts say that such a person may be a ''loner,'' a person with poor interpersonal skills and relationships, one who has trouble dealing with authorities or co-workers, or one who has a history of violence, substance abuse, or emotional problems. Beyond initial screening and hiring, employers need to be cautious about existing employees who may be manifesting warning signs of trouble. Employees who have difficulty with authority or become angry or upset easily. Employees who act paranoid and do things like write down what they consider to be insults in a notebook.