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Agricultural Safety Program
Reducing the risks in the agricultural workplace!
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Violence in the Workplace:
A Common Sense Approach to Prevention
(Summary of Safety Breakfast Meeting held Wednesday, April 8, 1998)
WAR IN THE WORKPLACE
Is your company turning into a battlefield? Are violent incidents
between employees becoming routine? Probably not, and that's great, noted
Alan Scott, featured speaker at a recent Safety Breakfast Meeting at
California State University, Fresno. But specialists in the field of
workplace violence warn that incidents are increasing. In just one recent
year in the U.S., for example, there were more than 110,000 reports of
violent incidents, resulting in 750 deaths and $4 billion in lost
production and legal fees.
After just one incident of violence, Scott warned, the atmosphere in a
workplace can be changed dramatically. For example, after a violent
incident such as a screaming or shoving match between two employees,
morale in the work area can plummet, and bring production down along with
it.
The good news is that employers can do something about it, said Scott, who
works as branch manager for American Protective Services, a national firm
specializing in workplace security. Scott provided an outline of steps
companies can take during a recent Safety Breakfast Meeting hosted by the
Center for Agricultural Business (CAB). Safety breakfast meetings are held
monthly and address current safety issues faced by employers in the agricultural
and agribusiness arenas.
PRO-ACTIVE APPROACHES HELP PREVENT VIOLENCE
It is the business of Scott's firm to help companies develop policies
and programs that will help prevent violent confrontations in the
workplace. Prevention strategies can't guarantee the peace, but they can
greatly reduce the likelihood of such an incident occurring, Scott said.
An initial understanding of three key concepts will enable an employer to
effectively address the problem of workplace violence, Scott said. They
are as follows:
- Knowledge - Company leaders must understand the potential for
violence in their workplace.
- Liability - Leaders must be aware that legal sanctions or
lawsuits can come as a result of violent incidents.
- Financial - A violent incident will inevitably lead to one
kind of financial loss or another.
DEVELOPING A POLICY APPROACH
Once the key concepts of workplace violence are understood, company
leaders will see the need to develop a policy approach of violence
prevention. Elements of an effective violence prevention plan include the
following:
- Policies - Develop a comprehensive, workable plan, a
"living" document; have legal council review to avoid legal
issues after the fact.
- Major players - Determine composition of the response team:
should include a company officer, human resources manager, industrial physiologist, and emergency services personnel.
- Coordination - Major players should understand and support
each other's roles.
- Training - Learn to identify danger signals; ignoring warning
signs only increases the strength of the violator and violence
potential.
- Tests - Mock drills will enhance response team's reaction and
intervention skills
- Discipline - Swift disciplinary action can diffuse current
and future problems
- Parameters - Understand your work force and develop policies
to serve workplace situations
SPOTTING THE SIGNALS OF POTENTIAL VIOLENCE
Learning to identify the signals of potential violence among employees
is a key to preventing the violent incident. Following are some of the
signs to watch for and some of the issues that can affect a worker's
behavior:
- Mood swings
- Family problems
- Financial problems
- Use of controlled substances
- Use of alcohol
- Negative attitudes
- Sudden change to poor work habits
- Out of character actions
PRACTICAL PREVENTION SYSTEMS
There are a number of simple, concrete steps an employer can take to
prevent violent situations from occurring. Many of these involve simple
controls over the interaction of employees and non-employees. Following
are some suggested methods of controls:
- Plant access
- Visitor entrance
- Vendor entrance
- Employee movement
- Electronics - alarms, closed-circuit TV, door controls
- Identification systems - photo and color coordinated
- Office entrance restrictions
- Furniture placement
- Ingress/egress points
- Secure areas (safe rooms)
While efforts designed to prevent violent confrontations at the
workplace do not guarantee they will not occur, they can greatly reduce
the chances, Scott reiterated. Considering the costs if it were to happen
should encourage most employers to take at least some steps toward
prevention. One of those steps could be to consult American Protective
Services or another company offering similar services. American Services
is headquartered in Oakland, California and has a branch office in Fresno.
UPCOMING SAFETY BREAKFAST MEETING
The next Safety Breakfast Meeting hosted by the Center for Agricultural
Business will be Wednesday, May 13, 1998, from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. in the
CATI Conference Room at the California Agricultural Technology Institute,
2910 E. Barstow Ave., Fresno.
Discussion topic will be "A Review of the New NIOSH Respirator
Standards." Speakers will be Mike Castro, sales representative for
the Moldex Co., and Ken McCollum, regional sales manager for Jorgensen
& Co. Persons planning to attend are asked to RSVP to CAB at (559)
278-4405.
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