A recent article in Security Magazine provided some interesting statistics from a recent survey on business workplace violence policies conducted by the law firm Littler, Mendelson.
The survey found that, in response to recent mass shootings at U.S. workplaces, fifty-two percent of employers have updated or implemented a “zero tolerance” workplace violence prevention policy.
Forty percent of e
mployers have developed an emergency response plan and a pre-employment screening process. Thirty-eight percent have conducted employee training sessions about recognizing and responding to a potentially violent situation; thirty-three percent have performed a safety and security audit; and twenty-eight percent have conducted active shooter response training.
Eleven percent of employers responding to the survey say they have taken no action because violence is not considered an issue at their workplace, and another one percent have not acted for fear of violating disability or discrimination laws.
What percentile is your business in? If you are in the eleven percent that have taken no action because you do not consider violence an issue at your workplace, I would encourage you to re-evaluate your thought process in this area. How many business affected by violent incidents considered violence an issue before tragedy struck? I would venture to say, very few. Our firm is usually called in after the fact – after an incident has occurred, which is unfortunate. Having a solid workplace violence policy, employment screening, employee training and robust security program can not only protect you and your employees from potential harm, but also protect your business from potential legal liability and adverse publicity.