48% of Workplace Violence is caused by…
Written by Robert D. Sollars
…Domestic violence (DV). That may seem preposterous to you, but it’s even worse. Think about the number of people you may personally know and the innumerable stories of DV you hear about on a daily basis within your community. Whether those incidents are broadcast on the news as something else… who knows, you have to sift through the garbage to figure it out.
No one can definitively know if those incidents you hear about will spill over into the workplace. In any event, it will have a chilling effect on your community. No matter the size of it, from a small community of professionals, the larger overall metropolitan area you live in, and even small rural country towns are hit by it. It affects everyone that is even remotely close to the victim.
The actual statistic that I have is that 48% of workplace violence (WPV) incidents begin as DV. Just because the number is below 50% or more, doesn’t necessarily mean that you are less likely to die at work due to a WPV incident. Your chances are still the same…50/50. Not really such great odds, are they?
The reasonable excuses you may have for your chances being higher are that you know no DV victims or that you don’t work close enough to anyone who is a victim. In that, you are 100% wrong…like those odds better? Here’s a short explanation.
Usually, if a DV incident spills over into WPV it doesn’t usually stay contained to just the intended victim, especially if the intent of the perpetrator is murder. They, 99% of the time men in DV incidents, will take out their anger on whoever may be around the victim.
In their eyes, the people who are in the way, legitimately or not, are trying to keep him from their property that he has to punish for some perceived slight or oversight. The key word in that sentence? Perceived. I have said it countless times. What they perceive to be their reality is reality and no one will dissuade them from it. Delusional? You betcha and there is nothing any of us can do about it.
You will notice that one term I used above is reprehensible to most people when describing a victim. Property of the perpetrator. But that is what the perpetrator believes. The victim is their property to do with as they see fit. Order to work for them, fetch them food, cigarettes, drugs, or booze, have sex when they want it, or do whatever. The major difference between these relationships and others similar, such as BDSM? These relationships are violent to the extreme in causing abuse and injury. From physical, mental, psychological, and emotional.
A report from the Barrows Neurological Institute, Phoenix, AZ. in 2017, states that as many as 5% of all DV victims have suffered a concussion with many of those having a permanent injury. Permanent injury? Mental loss, debilitating seizures, loss of coordination, and other examples of someone who has suffered severe head trauma.
Then there is the phrase ‘those standing in the way, legitimately or not. To the perpetrator, anyone, literally, anyone, who is in the way of stopping them from entering the facility is aiding and abetting their property from seeing them, security, receptionist, managers and etc. It doesn’t matter if it is procedure and policy or not, they are stopping them from seeing and murdering their property. They will not stop until they see the property…even if they have to murder dozens to get to it.
So, what can we do to help prevent DV and its arrival in our workplace to rein fire and brimstone upon innocent victims as well as their partners? Here is a short list of what YOU can do;
#1 if you see the victim begin shutting down emotionally after being open and having fun and friends…this would be especially true if they had just a new love interest or similar.
#2 not stopping to chat or possibly holding their heads up anymore, in other words looking at the ground for ‘something they lost’.
#3 physical injuries on their bodies such as bruising, welts, etc., and blaming themselves for being “so damned clumsy”.
#4 report anything like this you may see to management, security, or police
According to the company, legal & HR, these are about the only things you can do albeit morally, ethically, and legally, you may be able to do a lot more. But it is obvious that something has to be done in this country to curb DV where ever it occurs.
With DV resulting in more than 48% of all WPV incidents beginning this way, it is imperative that we attempt to stop it from entering the workplace. How do we do that? Another shortlist?
#1 sees some being abused in a store, parking lot, or other places? Report it.
#2 hears someone screaming for help while possibly in pain? Report it
#3 hears slapping sounds after an argument, furniture being smashed, or worse gun shots…Report it.
#4 even thinks someone is being abused in one way or another? Report it.
If you report possible abuse then you have fulfilled a part of your obligation as a human and in the eyes of many others who agree with you. Unfortunately, after that, the bureaucracy takes over and you may never know what happens to the potential victim. You watch the news one night and see the television reporter telling you about a WPV incident started by a DV perpetrator.
Like these blogs? Then please feel free to pass them along to friends, colleagues, or anyone who may benefit. Have them subscribe to my website: Sollars Violence Prevention Training & Consulting
It happens to Anyone…Any Time…Anywhere… For any Reason
I May Be Blind, but My Vision Is Crystal Clear
Permission to share? Of course, with full attribution.
Copyright 2022 Robert D. Sollars
