#when the workplace is closed due to inclement weather

[fractallogic]

Now of course I am no weather person and only have the absolute loosest grasp on how weather and the related physics works, but this does not actually seem possible to go from a high during the day of 29 and then slowly increase DURING THE NIGHT up to 40

But then of course the weather app today said it was sunny all day here in Eugene and I can confirm that both north and south of the university, it was very much not (except for a very lovely pre-sunset alpenglow kind of thing). So. The weather app is an idiot and not to be trusted in any case.

[ecargmura]

My New Boss Is Goofy Episode 2 Review - They're So Cute Together

While Shirosaki’s antics are adorable as heck, this episode’s main focus is how bad Momose’s previous job had affected him mentally, physically and capably and how his new job and boss will help ease his anxiety going forth. Hopefully, Momose will finally get the healing he needs after being overworked from his previous job.

Momose thinks back about how his previous job and boss never showed him how to do anything while his new job and Shirosaki help him meticulously. Just seeing how incompetent and selfish his previous job was makes me mad. Seriously, I’d get upset if my boss never showed me how to do anything or if I wasn’t informed of important announcements like the fire alarm or inclement weather closing. I wonder why his boss was so mean to him? Though, having a mean person at the workplace reminded me of when I used to work at a bank and I had an older coworker who treated me awfully. I feel you, Momose.

The way he mentioned how he managed to get the courage to transfer jobs was due to a planetarium ad he saw. The starry skies reminded him of his hometown Hokkaido and the way it moved his soul made him realize that he wanted to make ads just like this; the place he wanted to work happened to be his current workplace. The person who made the ad coincidentally happened to be Shirosaki, who also happened to be one of the interviewers when Momose was getting interviewed. Because Momose had said moving words in front of Shirosaki, this was the reason he wanted Momose to work under him and also the reason why Shirosaki is so attentive towards him. Seeing how moved the other train passengers (and me) were, I feel as if their meeting was meant to be.

Don’t let the fact that this is a Josei manga scare you from shipping these two. You are allowed to ship them. Even if this is for a Josei demographic, I’m sure there are people who read this just to ship these two. I’m convinced their in love with each other but are too dense to realize it. Heck, they went on an amusement park date for crying out loud! One day, they’ll be canon (in my delusions). Speaking of which, the amusement park date was adorable. I loved how they weren’t embarrassed for getting on rides together and such. Shirosaki’s deadpan reaction to the haunted house was hilarious as he was emotionless but terrified on the inside; he kind of reminds me of Kotaro from Gakuen Babysitters with the expressionless fear.

The animation for when they went up the roller coaster was actually really good. I thought it would be static, but given this is A-1, they did put in effort into the movements and I think that’s great. Other things I liked about this episode was Momose’s cute face when Shirosaki realized the fire alarm was just a test and not an actual fire and Momose constantly saying “Manager” in an adorable voice.

Only two episodes in and this show is both cute and healing simultaneously. It’s definitely something to watch on a weekend. My Saturdays are definitely great because of this show. I can’t wait to see more! What are your thoughts about this episode?

[buytarpaulinuk]

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[gfiedlerbi214]

Unit 5

Mental Health and Basic Needs, What is Stress?, Stress Management Techniques

Browse the Overview and Lecture pages.  How much/what do you already know about this topic?  What are you interested in learning about/initial questions.

This topic hits close to home with me. I struggle with my stress and how to manage it on a daily basis. I have anxiety and have a history of practicing different techniques to manage both my stress and anxiety. A lot of what is being discussed in this unit is going to be more like a review for me. Any new information that I may use to improve my mental health will be extremely beneficial!

Go through the lecture.  For each item, take general notes.  What facts seem important to know?

Maslow’s Hierarchy: The bottom two tiers--Physiological and Safety--are considered maintenance needs.  These are the basic things everyone needs to live in this world.  The top three tiers--Love & belonging, Esteem, and Self-Actualization--are considered growth needs, which help us have a better life experience, but are not necessary to keep our bodies alive.  

Types of Stress:

Acute stress. Those quick triggers that raise our blood pressure, get our heart to race, and instantly affect our mood.  These generally resolve quickly, even if you continue thinking about them for a few days.

Episodic Acute stress. Frequent mini-crises cause us to live in a state of tension.  These usually can't be solved quickly, and often make us worry a lot.  People talk about this as "going through a rough patch".

Chronic stress. Grinding stress that wears us down over the years and never really goes away.  Often caused by big picture problems with no resolution possible.  Trauma and adverse childhood experiences, as well as chronic illness can also be at the root, as well as world issues like poverty, war or racism.

Some links to pages with examples of stress management techniques:

https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/six-relaxation-techniques-to-reduce-stress

https://medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000874.htm

https://blogs.psychcentral.com/always-learning/2010/01/three-kinds-of-knowledge/

What was the point of the videos? What are a few things I learned on the websites, and might the site be useful in the future? What questions do these resources bring up?  If you were telling someone else about this class, what would you share from this unit.

These videos were helpful in highlighting some important issues many of us struggle with. Many of us are struggling in silence even. I personally am always looking for different outlets to battle my own personal stress. If there could be only one unit I was able to share with a peer regarding this class it would be this unit. I believe everyone benefits from learning about ways to keep their stress at bay.

As/after you engage in the Discussion: Can you summarize the question and the conclusions you and your classmates found? How do you feel about the issue now?

Discussion:

The United States fall behind most other countries when it comes to paid leave from work.  Many countries have standardized paid vacation, or paid national holidays.  Some have guaranteed paid maternal (and paternal!) leave when a new child comes into a home.  Americans can benefit from the Family and Medical Leave act of 1993 (FMLA), but it is unpaid, and only guarantees someone cannot be fired due to taking qualified leave.   Further, think of breaks throughout the day.  Some companies are good at allowing breaks, but others are not.  Some people only get breaks if they smoke.  How can employers (or companies!) use leave or breaks to improve the mental health of their employees? Can you find information on specific countries' leave policies to share with your classmates? Can you find any interesting things  companies are doing to improve the health of their employees? What would be an ideal work environment for your mental health?  Cite any information you get from any source outside your own head.  In your classmate's responses, you might want to look at some countries' health outcomes/happiness indicators to see if there might be a connection.  You may want to (kindly) play devil's advocate for someone's idea. What obstacles would make it hard for a company to implement that?

My response:

Companies that ensure employees are taking advantage of the leave/ breaks policies ensures that they care about their employees. It fosters a culture of caring. I believe that the ideal work environment can respect personal time and empathize with employees regarding life outside the workplace. Doing so, ensures a positive retention rate amongst employee hires and a positive reputation for that company! I personally have experience working in management positions and understand the importance respecting this employee-benefit. Allowing employees their entitled time to themselves to mentally relieve themselves momentarily from their day’s work can have benefits for everyone and not just the employee. According to the Center for Workplace Mental Health, “With consideration [of the] employee's needs, breaks can boost attention span and increase mental ability” (Reasonable Job Accommodations). This means the company receives a happy and productive employee! I’m positive the majority of the working population feel happiest when they can take breaks and schedule leave when they need them.

         Thanks to technology, new ways have been created to increase productivity through technology. Companies have been searching for new innovative ways to adjust an employee’s work-life balance. There is an idea being researched and tested in numerous countries like New Zealand, Norway, and Germany known as The Four-Day Work Week. A company in New Zealand ran an experiment that reduced their work week from 40 hours to 32 hours for all employees while paying the same salary. Researchers were brought in to observe and record their findings and were able to discover, “24% more employees felt they could successfully balance their work and personal lives, stress decreased by 7% among everyone involved, and overall work satisfaction increased by 5%” (Ellis, 2020). Jarrod Harr, human resources professor from Auckland University of Technology who jointly oversaw the experiment, said the biggest takeaway from the experiment was that the employee job performance did not improve nor worsen. Meaning job performance did not change when working four days instead of five. The studies completed in these foreign countries have resulted in promising ideas. “Supervisors [from these studies] said staff were more creative, their attendance was better, they were on time, and they didn't leave early or take long breaks” (Ellis, 2020). Do you think that if companies followed concepts like The Four Day Work Week along with respecting entitled breaks and time-off like sick leave, would they produce the same amount of work?

Citations:

Ellis, M. (2020, March 25). The Four-Day Work Week: Why It Works.  Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://zapier.com/blog/four-day-work-week/

Reasonable Job Accommodations. (n.d.). Retrieved April 15, 2020, from http://workplacementalhealth.org/Mental-Health-Topics/Reasonable-Job-Accommodations

I thought this discussion was interesting because I was able to read everyones perspective about the rights of the employee to breaks and leave in the workplace. New employees spend so much time in HR periods of their employment, it’s commonly highlighted as a topic for discussion. 

After you complete the Homework: What did you learn? What do you want to know more about?

Assignment Directions:

Time Management Activity : One way many people deal with stress is by gaining a better understanding of how they spend their time. Write a couple of paragraphs:

Nature Activity: Much research has validated the connection between spending time in nature and an improved stress response in the body.  Read the article 10 Ways to Relax in Nature and Stress Less (Links to an external site.).

Assess your current time management.  How well do you think you spend your time? How much of it is in your control?  Does this lead to any stresses in your life?

Choose one of the Strategies listed in this brochure.  How could you use one strategy to improve your time management.  Write a SMART goal that you could implement.

Spend 20-30 minutes (minimum) engaging with nature, however you choose.  Write a reflection paragraph about what you expected the experience to be like, what you did, and how it made you feel.  Would you want to try it again?  [If you have severely inclement weather during this assignment, you may choose to watch a nature video or do some guided imagery.  But understand, there is no substitute for actually being in nature!]

This homework was an excellent practice for myself to implement healthy strategies towards time management. As a mother I feel that it’s very important that I am familiar with as many ways to manage my time. I would like to learn more techniques and possibly look into different literature regarding different methods. I believe giving myself options and ideas to manage my time against uncertain circumstance is an important ability as a mother. Especially a mother trying to manage her household during this quarantine.

After you complete the Project: How was the experience? Any take-aways?

Project directions:

List the name of stress management technique you wish to practice.  Why did you choose this one?  What do you expect the experience to be like?  Have you tried this before?  What do you usually do to manage stress?

Find three (3) resources like websites or media that instruct you on how to use this technique.  Cite the URLs or book/authors.

Optional: Take the technique for a test run to see if there's anything you'll need to change before your "practice" next week.

Similarly to my takeaway from the homework, I found the experience working on this stress management project helpful. I would like to learn more techniques and possibly look into different literature regarding different methods. I believe giving myself options and ideas to manage my time against uncertain circumstance is an important ability as a mother. The resources I found were very insightful and had actually led me down various other rabbit-holes of sources of information.

General reflection on the unit--is there anything that feels important that you didn't mention above?  If you had free time, what topics might you want to look into further?

If i had free time I would continue my research on beneficial strategies towards managing both my time and my stress. This will be a battle with no end unfortunately. But I believe going into this unit, I was prepared to finish the assignments with better confidence going into channeling through my day-to-day.

[mrsteveecook]

boss shares personal info with the whole office, holiday parties outside work hours, and more

It’s five answers to five questions. Here we go…

1. My boss shares people’s sick leave info with the whole office

I have a question regarding letting people in the office know when someone has called out sick. In my office, we just have to email our boss and he will respond with “ok,ay feel better,” but he wants to know the full extent of the illness. (One time I said I wasn’t feeling well and he asked me to elaborate before giving me the okay.)

My boss then forwards the employee’s email to the entire office to let them know the person is out. I was sick the other day and told my boss I had a fever and was unable to come in, and later in the day had emails from coworkers telling me to feel better and hoped my fever broke.

Is my boss’s forwarding of these types of emails against some code? I felt uncomfortable having the entire office know my issue, but you can’t just say “you’re sick” to him.

It’s not against any kind of legal regulation, but it violates people’s privacy and is utterly unnecessary — and the same applies to your boss’s belief that he’s entitled to the personal details of why you’re taking sick time.

If you ever wanted to tackle this and you have decent rapport with your boss, you could say something like, “I’ve noticed you ask for details of exactly what’s wrong when I take a sick day. There are lots of reasons people might prefer not to discuss medical conditions at work, and I’d like to simply be able to say I’m sick without being asked for what could be private details.”

Or if you just want to take on the emails to the whole office, you could say, “Would you mind not forwarding details about specifically why someone is using a sick day? Sometimes that could be really personal and not something I would want shared with everyone.” If he pushes back, spell it out for him: “I don’t think anyone should need to share details of, for example, gynecological issues or legally protected disabilities with the entire office.”

2. Inviting an hourly employee to a holiday party outside of work hours

I am a young VP who works in finance and a first-time/young manager. As part of my general responsibilities, I manage a team of salaried employees and one hourly worker. We are a small but close-knit office. This year I am hosting our annual holiday party at my home. I plan on providing a festive buffet and some drinks for the office and their spouses.

My question — we have one hourly employee on our team. I have of course invited her and her husband, but I don’t want her to feel obligated to come or feel as if she is providing free labor. I also cannot get my boss to sign off on allowing her to “clock in” for the party. Am I wrong to invite her? I do not want her to feel obligated to participate but I do hope she comes and has a good time!

You definitely need to invite her! It would be far worse for her to feel she hadn’t been invited when everyone else was.

The best thing to do is to let everyone know that attendance is optional and that you hope people will attend but that you also understand that it’s a busy time of year and people have a lot going on. That way, if she’d prefer not to attend, you’ve given her an out — but without singling her out or making her feel unwelcome.

3. I work remotely — do I need to share my pregnancy until I’m much further along?

My entire company works from home and not locally, and in all the years I’ve worked here, I’ve never even met my boss. I’m wondering if it’s appropriate to keep my pregnancy secret from my entire workplace. I will not see my boss or any of my coworkers during the time I’m pregnant. We don’t offer maternity leave or short-term disability even, and I have not decided if I will continue to work or become a stay-at-home mom. There are a lot of factors to consider, and I won’t be able to have a firm decision on if I’m staying or going until much closer to the end of my pregnancy.

The issue is I do a lot for the company as a middle manager, and replacing and training a replacement is not going to be a two-week gig if that’s the way this goes. I know as soon as I mention I’m pregnant, my boss will want to know my plans and intentions, and I don’t want the pressure of needing an answer that I really don’t have. I understand why my boss would want as much time as possible to plan, and I respect that and plan to give as much time as I can, but I just won’t know until much further along due to some possible promotions at my husband’s job and us possibly moving. My job and boss have been good to me through these years, and I want to be good to them, too, no matter what I decide to do. Additionally, my annual review and raise will be smack in the middle of these nine months which further adds to the confusion.

If you wait until you’re eight months pregnant to announce both the pregnancy and that you’re leaving, it’s likely to come across oddly to your boss that you didn’t say something earlier.

I’d share no later than six months, but that doesn’t mean that you need to reach a decision sooner than you’re comfortable with. Until and unless you decide that you’re definitely not going to return after giving birth, you can simply stick with saying, “My plans are to continue working, but I’ll let you know if that changes for some reason.” That does mean that at some point you’ll need to do some talking about what your leave might look like and what the plans should be for your position while you’re out — and that may be planning that ends up being unnecessary if you decide not to return to work, but sometimes that’s how it goes. Sometimes people’s plans change later in their pregnancy or after they have the baby, and that’s okay.

4. My boss wants to give people a day off, but legally I can’t

I work as an administrative manager for a team of about 25 at a large state university. Our faculty, including department head, are completely unaware of staffing rules and HR policy. Things get tricky around the holidays because our department head will tell me to “give everyone the day off” as an act of generosity. The trouble is that I legally cannot do this. As a state agency, and only the state can modify of working schedule. A unplanned closure tends to happen only due to inclement weather, natural disasters, or something very major (sudden death of a state official). While I doubt anyone would complain about me to the university, I don’t feel comfortable breaking the rules to make my department head happy. His request puts me in a very difficult position, especially since historically the unapproved time off was given before I joined the team. How do I explain to him, and my staff, that I’m not trying to ruin the goodwill but rather trying to be compliant to rules beyond my control?

Talk to your department head and explain what you explained here. He may have no idea that this violates a rule (especially if it’s been done for years), so I’d assume the you simply need to fill him in.

Say something like, “Since the holidays are approaching, I wanted to check with you about how in the past you’ve sometimes suggested giving everyone the day off right before Christmas. I’d love to do it, but I’ve learned that we actually can’t — legally only the state can modify our working schedule. I wanted to flag it for you in case there’s something else we want to do for people this year instead.”

5. My coworker is trying to drag me into her conflict with my boss

I started a new job at a mid-size nonprofit a few months ago. Yesterday my coworker came into my office fuming and crying, saying she had just tried to file a complaint against our manager but had been told by our president that there was no evidence of misconduct. She then told me she wanted to hear “her side of the story” and ranted about our boss for several minutes, telling me he was disrespectful and had driven other people out of the organization. I was dumbstruck and just said “that sounds like a tough situation” until she left.

I have no idea why she felt the need to share all this with me—she clearly wanted to get me on her side, but as I said, I’m new to the company, and we’re not friends. I’ve gotten sucked into workplace drama at other jobs and seen the toxic environment it can create, and I have no interest in that anymore. Additionally, my relationship with my manager has been positive and respectful thus far, and I’m not interested in hearing other people trash talk him.

I guess now I’m wondering if I should tell my manager about what happened and how uncomfortable it made me. I want to nip this in the bud so that my coworker doesn’t try to pull me into this situation again, and I may need my manager’s support with that. But since main goal is to avoid being part of this conflict, I’m worried that talking to my boss would entrench me further in it. Should I just plan to rebut her more firmly if she approaches me again and tell her I’m uncomfortable with the conversation, or should I talk to my manager before she has the chance to bring it up again?

I don’t think this warrants talking to your boss about it. Your coworker tried to pull you into a conversation you didn’t want to have, you stayed neutral, and it hasn’t happened again. You may have been a sufficiently dissatisfying audience that she won’t attempt it again, but if she does, you can try shutting it down with something like, “I’m sorry you’re having a difficult time, but I don’t think I’m the right sounding board for this; I’ve always had good experiences with Bob.” If her attempts to discuss it with you become disruptive, at that point you might need to pull in your manager — but right now this is just one coworker venting to another, without realizing it wasn’t welcome, and that’s not boss territory.

You may also like:

my employee keeps over-sharing personal medical details

how much detail do you have to share when you call in sick?

what’s your boss allowed to ask when you call in sick?

boss shares personal info with the whole office, holiday parties outside work hours, and more was originally published by Alison Green on Ask a Manager.

from Ask a Manager https://ift.tt/2QDZk5R

[quinncolleano05-blog]

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[ourtown-rp-blog]

Welcome to the game, BRENTON MURDOCK! Your application was successful, and we’re excited to begin writing alongside you, Zeus. Please read over our checklist before sending in your link, which you should do within 24 hours!

IT’S ALL ABOUT YOOOOU ( ooc ) ♪

MAIN ALIAS: Zeus.

PRONOUNS: She/Her.

AGE: 25+.

ACTIVITY LEVEL: 6/10.

WHO YOU PLAYIN’ ?

FULL NAME: Brenton Cody Murdock.

PRONOUNS: He/Him.

FACECLAIM: Ansel Elgort.

AGE/BIRTHDAY: 25, February 29th.

ORDER: Third.

TYPE: Solo.

ORIENTATION: Bisexual/Biromantic.

THAT’S WHAT I GO TO SCHOOL FOR ♬

COLLEGE: Arkansas College.

GRADE: Doctoral.

MAJOR/MINOR: Psychology (PsyD).

ALL WORK AND NO PLAY ☆

all should work, whether they’re in school or not.

EMPLOYMENT STATUS: Full time.

WORKPLACE: Healing Scars.

POSITION: Therapist.

HOW LONG?: Two years, started as a Therapist in August. Beforehand, was just a Personal Care Attendant.

ALSO

EMPLOYMENT STATUS: Part time. (By appointment on weekends only.)

WORKPLACE: Cotton Plant Family Therapy.

POSITION: Therapist.

HOW LONG?: Two months.

WHO WILL I BE, IT’S UP TO ME ( ic ) ♪

{TW: Slight drug mention; marijuana.}

Brenton was always a carefree child, open to helping everyone around him, always with a smile on his face. He was the odd one of the bunch, really, picking up friends in the most unique places, not really caring who someone was, what they had, or what they looked like. He loved bringing joy to other people, and he loved picking people up when they were down. He had a pure heart, one of gold, and a kind and old soul. He never really conformed to gender stereotypes, and was definitely one of those children who would prance around in his mother’s dresses and high heels just for shits and giggles when he was playing. When he wasn’t forced to play inside due to inclement weather, he loved being outside in nature. Picking flowers, soaking up the sunshine, enjoying God’s green Earth. Simply put, Brenton was a free spirit; a flower child.

Brenton was also highly religious as a child. Maybe ‘flower child’ and 'organized religion’ didn’t exactly go hand in hand, but for Brenton it was as clear as air to him, being and doing both as easy as breathing. He wasn’t an old school Christian, and his grandparents would turn their noses up on how he decided to show his faith sometimes – but his faith was ever present. Perhaps one would think someone like Brenton would be Wiccan or another type of Pagan, but it wasn’t so. He remembered going to church with his grandparents from an early age, enjoying the atmosphere of friendly people, singing, prayer. Perhaps if he had come into religion on his own without a guiding hand, he would have chosen differently. But spending time with his grandparents was one of his favorite things, so it was only natural that he adapted to their beliefs.

Brenton didn’t exactly fit into a specific clique in school. He wasn’t a jock – in fact, most forms of exercise were horrid to him. He wasn’t an artist or a writer, and he didn’t particularly care for drama or music, either. While he was smart and had great grades, he wasn’t a nerd and didn’t particularly classify himself as a bookworm. And while he loved making people smile and feel good, he wasn’t the class clown, either. He did, however, enjoy a bit of Mary Jane with his friends almost constantly, but he wasn’t exactly a stoner. He didn’t fit into one group, and that was fine with him. Brenton was a social butterfly, fluttering between groups of people throughout his schooling. He had friends of every type, loving to surround himself with other people and befriend everyone, no matter who they were. He joined many clubs in high school, enjoying broadening his mind and hanging out with everyone.

{TW: Death, heart attack.} When Brenton was sixteen, trauma met his family. Brenton was visiting his grandparents, enjoying the day baking with his Nana and helping his Papa with chores around the house, when the old man suddenly collapsed. An ambulance was called, and he was rushed to the hospital. Unfortunately, that didn’t seem to help – he passed away from a major heart attack, and Brenton’s world was crushed. Sure, Brenton was close to his parents, and he loved his siblings to death – but his Papa? His grandparents were two of the most important people in his life, and losing one of them set Brenton into a downward spiral. He became severely depressed, isolating himself and acting out. He spent most of his time with his Nana, trying to cheer her up even through his own grief. Family and friends helped him through his hard time, but ultimately she was the one who suggested he see a grief counselor, as she was worried about her grandson and the things her daughter was telling her about the boy. Brenton was able to pick himself back up in due time, and returned to his old self, but it is something that will always stick with him.

As Brenton got older, figuring out what he wanted to do with the rest of his life was easy; he wanted to help people… he just didn’t know exactly how to go about that. He was too squeamish around blood to ever think about joining the medical field, and he didn’t believe in violence so the army was out of the question. When his Nana mentioned to him once that he always gave the best advice, that’s when it hit him – he wanted to be a psychologist. So he went to school for psychology, getting his master’s and becoming a therapist, but also deciding he wanted to go the distance and get his doctoral. He wanted to be a licensed psychiatrist so he didn’t have any road blocks when helping people. While he was still in school, he started working as a Personal Care Attendant at Healing Scars, wanting to help the teenagers there even though he didn’t have the schooling under his belt. As soon as he got his Master’s, he became a licensed therapist, but also wanted to help people who weren’t at Healing Scars, people who needed someone to talk to but couldn’t find time in their schedules to see someone during the week. He joined the practice at Cotton Plant Family Therapy, enjoying being able to help anyone who needs it.

Currently, Brenton’s life is busy. He’s always been an overachiever, pushing himself to be the very best human being he can be. But with school during the weekdays, Healing Scars during the weeknights, and weekend therapy at Cotton Plant Family Therapy, he’s getting a little stretched thin. (He does enjoy his Mary Jane when he’s feeling stressed out, though he doesn’t smoke it nearly as much as he did when he was a teenager.) But honestly – Brenton loves where he’s at in life right now. He loves doing things, bettering himself, helping people. He wouldn’t have it any other way. And when he walks across that stage and gets his PsyD in just two more years, he knows it’ll all be worth it in the end.

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Workplace Violence in 2006 was Staggering. A Must Read!

Workplace violence is a topic that plagues America. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there was a total of 5,840 work fatalities reported in 2006. Of this number, workplace violence accounted for 13 percent of all fatal work injuries occurring in 2006, at 788 deaths. The report further states that of the 444 fatal injuries to female workers, 29 percent were due to violence at 132 fatalities. Consequently, of the 5,396 deaths to male workers, 12 percent were due to violence, at 656 fatalities.

Workplace violence is not always about work-related issues. Most people assume that disgruntled workers are usually the culprit. However, that is not necessarily the case. As reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in two-thirds of workplace homicides, the attacker has no known personal relationship with the victims. Furthermore, most assailants who are employees commit workplace violence due to something else going on in their lives. Some of the more typical reasons for workplace violence are mental illness, drug abuse, divorce, or perceived personal failure.

Close to half of all workplace violence happens in a public environment. It is virtually impossible to work on solving the issue of violence in the workplace when most companies do not see it as a problem. The estimated cost of a workplace homicide to the employer is a whopping $800,000.00. It is safe to say that it would be less expensive to take action against workplace violence. Moreover, did you know that 27% of businesses have experienced at least one violent workplace incident within the last five years?

What are Some of the Indicators and Risk Factors for Workplace Violence?

There are several signs and risk factors for workplace violence. Researchers have configured and identified a list of factors that may increase the possibility of violence in the workplace. However, the good news is if employers pay attention to the warning signs and risk factors, they can address the problem issues beforehand.

Risk Factors for Workplace Violence from an Outside Assailant

Working alone or in an isolated area

Where alcohol is served

Working late at night

Working in high crime rate areas

An environment where money is exchanged with the public

Indicators for Workplace Violence as a Whole

Verbal threats to other employees

Displaying paranoia

A fascination with violence

Bizarre behaviors

Being unreasonable

Irresponsible actions

A vindictive nature

Chronic depression

Substance / Alcohol Abuse

Changes in performance

Five Surprising Acts of Workplace Violence

The threat of violence in the workplace is real. Moreover, these statistics validate the reality that violence in the workplace is often a deadly incident that can happen to any business.

For example, an early example of workplace violence took place on March 2, 1978. Leslie Torrey, a factory worker at the Pittsburgh Forgings Company in Jackson, Michigan, opened fire into a crowded break room, injuring 17 co-workers.

January 30, 2006 – Jennifer San Marco, 44, of Grants, New Mexico, opened fire at a mail processing plant in Goleta, California. The assailant had previously worked at the plant, but had been placed on retirement disability in 2003 due to mental health issues. She gained access to the plant by driving behind other employees and taking a name badge at gunpoint. The assailant also shot and killed a neighbor about an hour prior to the assault.

March 3, 2006 – Mohammed Taheri-azar, 22, a graduate of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, hit people on campus at UNC with his vehicle with the intent of “avenging the deaths of Muslims worldwide.” The assailant was born in Iran, but moved to the US at the age of two and later became a naturalized citizen.

March 14, 2006 – James Newman, 14, student at Pine Middle School, in Reno, Nevada, opened fire in the hallway of his school. The school had a delayed start because of inclement weather that morning, so not all students were in attendance. The assault was stopped by a teacher.

July 28, 2006 – Naveed Haq, 30, of Pasco, Washington, opened fire in the Seattle Jewish Federation building. The assailant identified himself as a Muslim American and expressed being unhappy with the war in Iraq and the US support of Israel. Authorities later called the assault a hate crime, rather than an act of terror, because of statements the assailant made to a 911 operator during the attack.

October 2, 2006 – Charles Roberts, 32, took hostages in the West Nickel Mines Amish School and opened fire when becoming agitated. The assailant’s behavior supposedly became more jovial in the weeks before the assault.

Active Shooter Situations in the Workplace

Proper planning and training can reduce injuries related to an active shooter incident. Controlling the impact of an active shooter involves many layers of security. Those layers can consist of an incident response plan, a panic button system, security staff and surveillance cameras.

The first step is to know what to do in those critical moments. The first minute of an active shooter incident is the most important moment of your company’s emergency response. Training and being mentally prepared to take action in a crisis can make a big difference. Furthermore, just knowing where all of the building exits and locking doors are located can help boost a person’s survival.

Moreover, there is no foolproof way to avert an active shooter incident. However, with the speed and accuracy of information given in the initiated alert can contribute to impact a positive result. Additionally, there is new technology available that enables mass notification to those who need to know about the crisis to increase the probability of a successful emergency response.

In conclusion, I encourage you and your staff to become familiar with the violence prevention and incident response plans for your facility. An essential part of violence prevention is to utilize those policy resources when you feel it is necessary. Report unusual or suspicious behavior to administrators immediately. Moreover, trust that “uh-oh” feeling when things just don’t seem legit. Practice incident response plans at least quarterly so that the training remains fresh. If employees have clear policies and procedures to follow during a crisis, they can protect themselves more efficiently. Hundreds people’s lives are lost every year to violence in the workplace. Arm your employees with the tools and knowledge they need to make an appropriate decision.

Still Unsure About a Panic Alarm System?

Contact us for more information to make the best decision for your panic button system.

info@communityresponsesystems.com or 800-533-7201 M-F 8-5 pm CST