Workplace violence is a serious issue and every organization should be proactive and develop a policy to address workplace violence. According to OSHA almost 2,000,000 people are victims of workplace violence every year. OSHA defines workplace violence as “any act or threat of physical violence, harassment, intimidation, or other threatening disruptive behavior that occurs at the work site. It ranges from threats and verbal abuse to physical assaults and even homicide.”

Workplace violence causes organizations millions of dollars in lost profits every year, increased absenteeism, and decreased morale among employees. Research shows that one in every seven employees do not feel safe at work.

Workplace violence can be internal or external. It can be based off revenge, robbery or ideology – with or without a component of mental illness.

Although there is no fail-safe way to predict all types of workplace violence, there are certain behaviors that are possible pre-cursors for workplace violence:

• Violent comments towards individuals 
• Abnormal emotional responses to criticism
• Unexplained mood swings
• Excessive use of drugs and/or alcohol
• Negative, unexplained changes in job behavior and production
• Unexplained absenteeism
• Depression or suicidal statements
• Paranoia
• Resistance to changes at work, persistent complaining or unfair treatment
• Repeated violations of company policy

Along with a zero-tolerance policy towards workplace violence, there are numerous other ways for organizations to mitigate their risk and reduce the chances of workplace violence.