Workplace violence in a failing economy: increased threat?

by TDH | December 2, 2008 at 04:58 pm

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The US official recessionary status and the continued slide of the global economy means more layoffs – which is understandable, but what if you have to do the laying off? Are your disgruntled employees going to go 'postal' on you?

As the global financial crisis grinds on, it is doing more than generating foreclosures, bankruptcies and losses in the financial markets: It also means people are losing their jobs as many companies cut back on staff in an attempt to stay solvent. Last week, banking giant Citibank announced plans to lay off some 53,000 employees, and Citibank is not alone, as many other companies are being forced to adopt similar measures. These layoffs are not confined to the banking sector; the automotive, computer and transportation sectors have also been hit hard.

It is common during times of economic crisis for such incidents to gain more public attention, but, according to Strategic Forecasting, employers and would be ‘layer-offers’ need not worry (or at least not any more than they normally do). Several myths about workplace violence prevail, but it seems that statistically neither layoffs nor even the holidays enrange employees enough to terrorize their co-workers

It It is also important to note that workplace homicides seldom occur randomly. They are usually planned in advance, and in most cases the perpetrator intentionally targets a specific individual, usually a supervisor, human resources manager or co-worker, whom he believes is responsible for his plight.

In most cases of workplace violence, the violent outburst is driven by factors that build up over a long period of time, rather than by sudden, traumatic events. Failed romantic relationships or marriages, stress from financial problems, lack of job advancement and perceived (or actual) injustice at the hands of a co-worker or superior are all factors that have led to violent incidents in the workplace.

And apparently it isn’t even ex-employees who are inflicting the damage

studies by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and others show that only about 22 percent of workplace homicides involve former employees, compared to approximately 43 percent involving current employees. (The remaining incidents were committed by non-employees, with 21 percent involving domestic disputes and 14 percent involving customers or clients.)

In addition, conventional corporate security wisdom states that the increased economic and personal stress of the holiday season also leads to an increase in workplace violence. Again, this is not the case.

According to respected sources such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, suicides actually go down during the winter and peak during the spring. That said, workplace violence incidents can still occur during the holidays, but the holidays are not likely to bring such incidents in epidemic proportion.

So, statistically speaking, the gravity of the current economic emergency and its accompanying job losses doesn’t even outweigh your cubical neighbour’s incessant nail tapping or your bosses recurring idiosyncrasies.