Violence Prevention in the Workplace

Workplace violence often begins with verbal or written threatening communications and can escalate to physical violence or even homicide. Workplace violence is a serious concern for employers because homicide is the fourth-leading cause of workplace-related deaths in the US. With people spending forty hours or more in a stressful, competitive environment, an eruption of violence is no surprise. Violence prevention in the workplace begins by addressing the problem at the stage of threatening communications -- before it spins out of control. 

It is essential that employees feel that they have somewhere to turn to report incidents without fear of repercussion and that they be encouraged to do so as soon as they receive a threat or observe a threatening situation.

With verbal threatening communications, it is one person's word against another. However, in the case of anonymous written or electronic threatening communications, securing evidence is critical to identifying the offender and developing a case. 

Finding and implementing systems for violence prevention in the workplace isn't something that should be achieved through trial and error. There are strategic measures that businesses can put in place that offer proven results for violence prevention. The Academy Group works with numerous Fortune 500 companies, including 40 percent of the top 50 companies in the Fortune 500, on a variety of criminal matters including violence prevention in the workplace and identifying the source of anonymous threatening communications. Through consultation with former FBI agents who are experts on the violent and criminal mind, our clients have the advantage in preventing violence in the workplace.