Workplace Violence

Source: FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin

Date: January 1, 2011

Workplace violence, a

complex and widespread

issue, has

received increased attention

from the public, mental health

experts, and law enforcement

professionals.1 The wide range

of acts that fall under this rubric

include all violent behavior and

threats of violence, as well as

any conduct that can result in

injury, damage property, induce

a sense of fear, and otherwise

Workplace Violence

Prevention

Readiness and Response

By STEPHEN J. ROMANO, M.A., MICÒL E. LEVI-MINZI, M.A., M.S.,

EUGENE A. RUGALA, and VINCENT B. VAN HASSELT, Ph.D.

January 2011 / 1

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2 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin

impede the normal course of

work.2 Threats, harassment,

intimidation, bullying, stalking,

intimate partner violence, physical

or sexual assaults, and homicides

fall within this category.3

Although a handful of highprofile

incidents (e.g., mass

shootings at a workplace) have

led to increased public awareness,

prevalence rates show that

nonfatal workplace violence is

a more common phenomenon

than previously believed. For example,

a Bureau of Justice Statistics

Special Report estimated

that approximately 1.7 million

incidents of workplace violence

occurred each year between

1993 and 1999, with simple and

aggravated assaults comprising

the largest portion.4 The same

report revealed that 6 percent

of workplace violence involved

rape, sexual assault, or homicide.

According to a Bureau of Labor

Statistics report, 518 homicides

occurred in the workplace in

the United States in 2008.5 Most

recently, data revealed that 16

percent of workplace fatalities

resulted from assaultive and violent

acts.6 However, this being

said, most workplace homicides

take place during robberies or

related crimes. Finally, considering

actual reported workplace

violence, it is estimated that

these events cost the American

workforce approximately $36

billion dollars per year.7...