Workplace Violence and Employer’s Responsibility
Many organizations unfortunately overlook the importance of a workplace violence policy until after a harmful incident occurs, leading to physical or psychological trauma for employees. This reactive approach leaves both employees exposed to harm and businesses open to significant liability.
This past year the Virginia General Assembly created a House Bill to address workplace violence. As part of the bill the General Assembly wanted businesses with over 100 employees to create “an effective workplace violence policy that provides a mechanism for employees to report workplace violence and measures to protect employees from workplace violence…” This bill would have put into place an effective means to protect employees from workplace violence for larger businesses. While the Virginia House of Delegates passed this forward-thinking bill, it was ultimately vetoed by Governor Glenn Youngkin, preventing it from becoming law this year.
Once section of the bill created specific guidelines for businesses to follow in implementing their workplace violence policy. Section D of the bill read, “Each workplace violence policy developed pursuant to this section shall include procedures and methods for (i) identifying the individual or team responsible for implementation of the policy; (ii) reporting instances, threats, concerns, risks, and hazards of workplace violence to the responsible individual or team; (iii) incident response and post-incident investigation, including procedures for employers to respond to reports of workplace violence; (iv) emergency response, including procedures for threats of incidents involving a firearm or dangerous weapon; (v) communicating with and training employees on workplace violence hazards and threats, work practice controls, the employer's policy, and procedures for confronting, responding to, and reporting workplace violence threats, incidents, and concerns; (vi) assessing risks of workplace violence and hazards to employees exposed to such risks and hazards; and (vii) hazard prevention, engineering controls, or work practice controls to correct hazards in a timely manner.”
The very existence of this bill signals a growing focus among lawmakers on the employer's responsibility for employee safety. Even without the bill's passage, businesses could still face civil liability if a violent incident occurs that might have been prevented by adequate policies and procedures.
Therefore, it's crucial for business owners and Human Resources departments to proactively review and strengthen their current policies to address workplace violence. Partnering with experts in workplace violence can help organizations develop robust policies that not only protect employees from harm but also safeguard the business from potential legal ramifications.
What steps is your organization taking to address workplace violence prevention? If you're looking to proactively create a safer environment for your employees, Boyd Threat Solutions LLC is here to help. Reach out to us, and let's collaborate on developing effective strategies tailored to your workplace.
