More than 40% of all WPV incidents are due to…
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 or the innumerable stories of DV you hear about on a daily basis within your community or organization. Whether those incidents are broadcast on the news as something else… who knows the difference, except the newscasters, police, & management.
No one can definitively tell you if those incidents you hear about will spill over into your organization. If it does, it will have a chilling effect, like freezing hydrogen, on both the organization and the overall community in which it’s located (which also means the community inside the facility. No matter the size of it, from a small community of professionals to the larger overall metropolitan area you live in. It affects everyone that is even remotely close to the victim and the organization where the violence occurs.
The actual statistic that I have is that 43% of workplace violence (WPV) incidents begin as DV. Just because the number drops 2% 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? You are sure as fuck wouldn’t take that to the race track or the betting window for the NFL, MLB, NBA, or any other sport.
Your reasonable excuses you may give yourself for your chances of being lower to be injured or die, are that you know no DV victims or that you don’t work close enough to a victim, in that you are 100% wrong…like those odds better?
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 them from their property that they have to punish for some perceived slight or oversight. The keyword in that sentence? Perceived. I have said it countless times in my blogs, presentations, and just discussing it. What they perceive as their reality is nothing less than reality and no one will dissuade them from it. Delusional? You damned fucking straight it is! The worst part? there is nothing any of us can do about it…except prevention, which is hard enough and hardly even worth the thought or given a thought by those in charge.
You will notice that one term I used above is reprehensible to most people when describing a victim, including myself. 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? These relationships are violent to the extreme causing abuse and injury. From physical, mental, psychological, and emotional.
A report from the Barrows Neurological Institute, Phoenix, AZ. in September 2017 (and do you really think it’s improved with the pandemic running rampant?), 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. Maybe the current term that most people will recognize better…Traumatic Brain Injuries or TBIs.
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.
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…
#2 not stopping to chat or possibly holding their heads up anymore
#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, and organizations, to curb DV where ever it occurs.
With DV resulting in more than 43% of all WPV incidents beginning this way it is imperative that we attempt to stop it from entering the facility…another short list;
#1 see someone being abused in a store, parking lot, or another place? Report it.
#2 hears someone screaming for help while possibly in pain? Report it
#3 hears slapping sounds after an argument or worse gunshots? 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. 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.
I am more than willing to discuss DV within your organization and help you secure the facility and safeguard any employees that are at risk, of any violent incidents. Simply contact me at robert@sollarsviolenceprevention.com or call me at 480-251-5197, 24/7 365 for a consultation.
Like these blogs? Then please feel free to pass them along, with proper attribution, to friends, colleagues, or anyone who may benefit, from proper attribution. Have them subscribe at 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
Copyright 2022 Robert D. Sollars
