The Goldstein Law Firm, P.C.

The Goldstein Law Firm

Mid-November 2009 Newsletter

“Violence in the Workplace: How to Protect Your Employees and Your Company”

By: Charles H. Goldstein, Esq.

 The Goldstein Law Firm

Although the economy continues to recover, many of you are still faced with tough day-to-day operating decisions such as employee layoffs, reduction in employee pay/benefits, and other necessary measures.  In making employment decisions that are crucial in many ways to the future viability of your businesses, you should never “make decisions out of fear” or alternatively “fear to make decisions”.

Recently, there have been an inordinate number of incidents reported in the news of workplace violence against managers and supervisors by former employees who blame them for losing their jobs.  As an Employer, you have a duty under Federal and California Occupational Health and Safety laws to maintain a safe workplace. Allowing a potentially violent employee to remain in the workplace could create both a human tragedy and serious liability for an Employer. 

In addition, Employers who knew or should have known that an employee had a serious potential for violence in the workplace and who took no definitive action to remove the employee from the workplace have been held liable for actual, compensatory and in some cases punitive damages for negligent hiring, negligent retention, intentional and/or negligent infliction of emotional distress, assault, battery and/or wrongful death. The cost of the human tragedy created by violence in the workplace is even most lasting.

Therefore, with the human and financial stakes are as high as they are, all Employers need to know how to recognize the initial warning signs and “Red Flags” associated with violent employees, how to take steps to minimize the potential of violence, and how to effectively handle the aftermath should violence occur. 

1.         Initial Warning Signs and Red Flags:

Employers are in the best position to proactively deal with potentially violent employees when they can identify troubling behavior and other initial warning signs. Early warning signs of potential workplace violence can include the following behavior: (a) refusing to cooperate with his or her immediate supervisor; (b) spreading malicious rumors and/or gossip to harm others; (c) consistently and aggressively arguing with co-workers; (d) acting belligerently toward customers or clients, managers and co-workers; (e) constantly swearing at co-workers and other employees; (f) making unwelcomed sexual comments to members of the opposite sex; (g) acting as a disgruntled, chronic complainer; and (h) showing an inordinate fascination with firearms and other weapons.

            Other behaviors that are red flags and that can signify potential violence in the workplace include: (a) engaging in physical altercations with other co-workers; (b) refusing to obey company policies and procedures; (c) sabotaging and/or stealing equipment and property; (d) verbalizing wishes to cause physical injury to co-workers and/or management (e.g. “I could easily bring my gun in here, walk into the office and blow our supervisor away”); (e) physical intimidation (e.g. an employee intimidates other employees by aggressively hovering over them or an employee who uses other methods to instill fear in co-workers by displaying a concealed weapon); (f) physically stalking other employees around the workplace, parking lot, or around an employee’s home, or using social networking sites to harass employees; (g) sending e-mails that depict violent sexual images to other employees; (h) expressing a frustrated sense of entitlement, ownership, righteousness, and/or moral outrage (e.g.: an employee who is extremely upset after being laid off or with having not been laid off, but not being given an annual salary raise); and (i) viewing himself or herself as being victimized by management.  These signs should not be ignored.

2.         Job Performance Problems that Could be Warning Signs of Potential Workplace Violence:

            Certain types of job performance problems may also be warning signs of potential workplace violence and include: (a) an employee’s attendance problems – excessive tardiness, improbable excuses for absences, and/or higher than average absenteeism rates; (b) an employee’s impact on a supervisor’s/manager’s time – a supervisor is spending a disproportionate amount of time coaching and/or counseling an employee concerning personal problems, re-doing the employee’s work, and/or dealing with co-worker concerns caused by the employee; (c) an employee’s decreased productivity – making excessive mistakes, poor judgment, missed deadlines, wasting work time and materials; (d) an employee’s inconsistent work patterns – alternating periods of high and low productivity and quality of work; (e) an employee’s inappropriate reactions to criticism: overreaction and extreme anger; and (f) an employee’s concentration problems – an employee who is usually distracted and often has trouble recalling instructions, project details, and deadline requirements.