ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, April 7, 1996 TAG: 9604050132
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: 4 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: WORKPLACE
DATELINE: ATLANTA
SOURCE: SANDY AMANN JOHN COX NEWS SERVICE
A customer at a suburban Atlanta deli rescues a female employee who is being attacked by a knife-wielding former boyfriend. The attacker is shot and killed.
A Florida insurance employee opens fire on a table of company managers, killing three and wounding two before turning the gun on himself.
Workplace violence usually grabs the headlines when a disgruntled employee goes on a killing spree. But such dramatic incidents are only the tip of an iceberg that costs employers billions annually in workers compensation, lost productivity, safety fines, counseling, added security, legal and medical costs, and insurance premiums. A spate of post office shootings grabbed the nation's attention, but the reality is on-the-job violence can happen anywhere - from a corner deli to a corporate office. And it's increasing at large and small firms.
``It has become a large societal problem, and many employers are challenged with coming up with a solution,'' said Emory Mulling, president of Atlanta's Mulling Group, an outplacement and executive coaching firm.
``We're talking about domestic as well as workplace violence and how domestic violence can affect workplace violence,'' Mulling said.
Any sort of change at a company, especially layoffs and firings, can trigger stress and violence. Most common are threats to managers, assaults by co-workers and domestic violence that spills over to the job.
In fact, about one-fifth of violent incidents in the workplace involve some type of domestic or romantic entanglement. And three-fourths of women who are victims of domestic abuse are threatened or abused while at work, said Barbara Sachs, executive director of the Council on Battered Women.
``Employers can't turn a blind eye to what's going on in the home,'' said James H. Coil III, a partner at the Atlanta law firm of Kilpatrick and Cody who represents management in employment-related matters. ``If they understand how it boils over into the workplace, they can learn to recognize the problem and take appropriate measures.''
In addition to providing a safe environment for workers and clients, he said, companies also have a new concern - lawsuits claiming an employer failed to select or manage an employee with care. Few such cases have reached court yet, so the liability a company could face is unknown.
Employees can help by spotting potentially violent co-workers. According to research, those who kill in the workplace tend to be men ages 25-40, who own weapons, are paranoid, have disciplinary and family problems, run-ins and personality clashes, and resent authority.
Last month the U.S. Labor Department urged businesses to take steps against workplace violence. Labor Secretary Robert Reich released a set of voluntary guidelines, which included metal detectors to identify weapons, better lighting and more than one exit to escape.
``The time to plan how to deal with violence is before an incident happens,'' Mulling said. ``Threats can be as intimidating as a violent outburst. Companies need to know how to handle small as well as large incidents.''
LENGTH: Medium: 62 linesby CNB