Sem’s general observations:
- Badly handled or emotional discipline, refusal of service, or termination often triggers the violence. Never discipline, terminate, or refuse service with emotion.
- Violence is evolutionary. It tends to escalate. Most situations do show some warning signs.
- In many situations, people knew something was wrong and didn’t do anything. Generally, someone is aware of an escalating situation with a coworker, patient, or customer.
- No two incidents are the same, so—and this is a critical concept—you have to allow some room for a judgment call.
Sem, who is the president of Sem Security Management in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, was joined by Di Ann Sanchez, PhD, SPHR, the founder and president of DAS HR Consulting LLC, at a recent webinar sponsored by BLR®.
‘Code Silver, Zone 12’
In the event of a violent incident, says Sem, use “plain talk.” You want to make sure as many as possible know what is happening and what they should be doing. Use e-mail, PA system, whatever you have, says Sem. And use plain talk. During one incident Sem is familiar with, the PA system announced “Code Silver, Zone 12.” Unfortunately, no one knew what that meant, let alone what to do.
Maintain a Civil and Respectful Environment
A civil and respectful environment is powerful in creating an atmosphere in which violence is less likely, says Sem. Always preserve dignity, he says. Yes, you have to get on with your business, but you don’t have to humiliate the person you are terminating.
One poor practice he still sees is the “perp walk”—the person who has been terminated is paraded out past peers, sometimes by a uniformed security officer. For some people, if dignity is lost, there’s nothing more to lose, Sem says.
Develop an Active Shooter Plan
Have plans for full or partial lockdown vs. shelter in place vs. partial or full evacuation, Sem says.
- Will everyone hear and know what to do?
- Who makes the decisions?
- Who will respond?
- How will smaller, outlying facilities address an incident?
- What if the incident takes place after hours?
Coordinate with law enforcement now, before an incident occurs, Sem adds.
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Early Warning Signs or Indicators of Violence
Below are some of the early warning signs or indicators of potential violence. Your concern should be heightened when there are multiple signs, says Sem.
- Drug or alcohol abuse
- Mental Illness
- Not capable of empathy for the problems or concerns of others
- Blames others for his/her problems or deficiencies
- Feels entitled to receive good treatment
- Has few interests outside of work—views work as the core of his/her identity
- A “loner”—little or no social/family interaction or support—few friends or outside interests
- Recent family, financial, or personal problems
- Preoccupation with violent themes or revenge
- Holds grudges
- Frequently angry or argumentative
- Past history of violent behavior
- History of bullying or a victim of bullying
- Commonly intimidates or instills fear in others
- Past pattern of direct or veiled threats
- Talks about and/or fantasizes about revenge or violence
- Preoccupation with weapons
- Sudden change in personality or attitude
- Hypersensitive to criticism
- History of sexual or racial harassment or discrimination
- History of stalking
- History of throwing objects, hitting, slapping, poking, kicking, pinching, grabbing, pushing, etc.
Precipitating or Triggering Events
Sem’s list of stress-inducing events that could trigger violence and, therefore, might merit attention to planning include:
- Employee or student termination or discipline
- Refusal of service
- Refusal of drugs
- Demand for payment
- Cancellation or prolonged wait for service; shuffling
- Conflict with a coworker or supervisor
- Relationship gone bad
- Domestic stress such as separations or divorces
- Financial stress such as bankruptcy
- Other personal crisis or stressful situation
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Should Your Facility Have a Safe Room?
We’ve learned that often violent situations last only minutes, typically just until law enforcement arrives. So the concept of the safe room is to “buy time” until the threat is gone, Sem says a safe room ideally should include the following aspects:
- Conference room, office, storage room, rest room, etc.;
- Lockable from inside;
- No inside (outside) windows (or blinds);
- Phone;
- Alternative exit; and
- Robust door, frame, and lock.
In tomorrow’s Advisor, the four essential components of a workplace violence program, plus an introduction to BLR’s unique checklist-based wage and hour self-audit guide.