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In 2011, our company commissioned a national workplace violence survey of Americans who work outside of the home. From the results, we were surprised to learn that according to employees, more than half of CEOs and Presidents are not concerned with workplace violence within their organization. This is interesting, especially since other survey results showed that 34 percent of American workers go to work each day worried about workplace violence.
A common thread in preventing workplace violence is leadership. Supportive leadership will help create a safer and more productive work environment. Organizational leaders need to be involved in setting standards for workplace violence prevention and showing their commitment to this cause. In return, this commitment will spread to their direct reports.
Today, leaders can begin creating this zero-tolerance culture by:
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Deploying a company-wide workplace violence survey
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Implementing ongoing training on workplace violence prevention
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Hosting town hall meetings that highlight the topic of workplace violence prevention
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Establishing committees to spearhead this initiative
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Launching internal stress management and workplace violence awareness campaigns
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Developing proper reporting procedures
Employees want to feel in touch with their leaders, and appreciate a shared connection to issues that matter. Engaged leaders have engaged employees, and engaged employees have higher morale, a sense of teamwork and feel united, thus lessening the chance of workplace violence risks.
Start small, and get people talking. Workplace violence is an ever-growing issue across all industries. When leaders establish their position on this topic, they can create a cultural shift within their organization. This cannot be a one-time initiative, but an evolving effort to eliminate workplace violence. It may seem simple, almost too elementary to be a corporate issue. But it is.
About the Author
Mimi Lanfranchi is President, National Accounts & Government Services at Allied Universal.
