Societal cost of workplace homicides in the United States, 1992-2001

Violence in the healthcare workplace

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Healthcare workers experience a disproportionate frequency of workplace violence. Identifying commonalities among incidents of workplace violence provides an opportunity for change to prevent and mitigate future violence.

RECENT FINDINGS

Despite a continued decline in overall workplace violence, the rate of violence in the healthcare sector is steadily rising. While healthcare workers make up 13% of the workforce, they experience 60% of all workplace assaults. Environmental, structural, and staffing issues may all contribute to the increased rates of workplace violence affecting healthcare workers.

SUMMARY

Comprehensive proactive workplace violence prevention programs can significantly reduce the frequency of violence and the negative impact on employees and institutions. Analyzing the factors that contribute to violence in the healthcare workplace provides the potential to mitigate these risks and reduce episodes of violence.

How to engage small retail businesses in workplace violence prevention: Perspectives from small businesses and influential organizations

BACKGROUND

Small retail businesses experience high robbery and violent crime rates leading to injury and death. Workplace violence prevention programs (WVPP) based on Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design reduce this risk, but low small business participation limits their effectiveness. Recent dissemination models of occupational safety and health information recommend collaborating with an intermediary organization to engage small businesses.

METHODS

Qualitative interviews with 70 small business operators and 32 representatives of organizations with small business influence were conducted to identify factors and recommendations for improving dissemination of a WVPP.

RESULTS

Both study groups recommended promoting WVPPs through personal contacts but differed on other promotion methods and the type of influential groups to target. Small business operators indicated few connections to formal business networks.

CONCLUSIONS

Dissemination of WVPPs to small businesses may require models inclusive of influential individuals (e.g., respected business owners) as intermediaries to reach small businesses with few formal connections.

Understanding workplace violence: the value of a systems perspective

Workplace violence is a leading form of occupational injury and fatality, but has received little attention from the ergonomics research community. The paper reports findings from the 2012 New Zealand Workplace Violence Survey, and examines the workplace violence experience of 86 New Zealand organisations and the perceptions of occupational health and safety professionals from a systems perspective. Over 50% of respondents reported violence cases in their organisation, with perpetrators evenly split between co-workers and external sources such as patients. Highest reported levels of violence were observed for agriculture, forestry and construction sectors. Highest risk factor ratings were reported for interpersonal and organisational factors, notably interpersonal communication, time pressure and workloads, with lowest ratings for environmental factors. A range of violence prevention measures were reported, although most organisations relied on single control measures, suggesting unmanaged violence risks were common among the sample.

Examining occupational health and safety disparities using national data: a cause for continuing concern

BACKGROUND

Occupational status, a core component of socioeconomic status, plays a critical role in the well-being of U.S. workers. Identifying work-related disparities can help target prevention efforts.

METHODS

Bureau of Labor Statistics workplace data were used to characterize high-risk occupations and examine relationships between demographic and work-related variables and fatality.

RESULTS

Employment in high-injury/illness occupations was independently associated with being male, Black, ≤high school degree, foreign-birth, and low-wages. Adjusted fatal occupational injury rate ratios for 2005-2009 were elevated for males, older workers, and several industries and occupations. Agriculture/forestry/fishing and mining industries and transportation and materials moving occupations had the highest rate ratios. Homicide rate ratios were elevated for Black, American Indian/Alaska Native/Asian/Pacific Islanders, and foreign-born workers.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings highlight the importance of understanding patterns of disparities of workplace injuries, illnesses and fatalities. Results can improve intervention efforts by developing programs that better meet the needs of the increasingly diverse U.S. workforce.

Non-robbery-related occupational homicides in the retail industry, 2003-2008

BACKGROUND

The purpose of this study was to examine non-robbery-related occupational homicides in the retail industry from 2003 to 2008.

METHODS

Data were abstracted from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries. Motive (robbery- or non-robbery-related) and workplace violence (WPV) typology (Type I-IV) were assigned using narrative text fields. Non-robbery-related homicide rates were calculated and compared among WPV types, demographic characteristics, and occupation.

RESULTS

Twenty-eight percent of homicides that occurred in the retail industry were non-robbery-related. The leading event associated with non-robbery-related homicides was Type II (perpetrated by customers) (34%), followed by Type IV (perpetrated by personal relationship) (31%). The majority of homicides were due to arguments (50%). Security guards and workers in drinking establishments had the highest homicide rates per 100,000 workers (14.3 and 6.0, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

Non-robbery-related homicides comprised a meaningful proportion of workplace homicides in the retail industry. Research is needed to develop strategies to prevent non-robbery-related homicides specifically.

Understanding workplace violence and its prevention in New Zealand: The 2011 New Zealand workplace violence survey

This exploratory study examined the workplace violence problem in a sample of 96 New Zealand organisations. Just over one-half of participating organisations reported cases of violence, with a total of nearly 2,500 cases reported in 2009. The incidence rate for all violence cases was high compared with internationally reported rates. Highest violence incidence rates and lost-time were reported for the health sector, where patients, customers/clients and family members were rated as sources of violence of particularly high importance. Risk factors with highest mean importance ratings were related to exposure to unstable persons, including: alcohol and drug use, harassment, and mental and physical instability/distress. Workload and time-pressure were also identified as risk factors for some organisations. Just 50% of organisations formally recognised violence as a hazard in the workplace, while interventions were largely limited to employee training and technological factors.

Occupational health and safety surveillance and research using workers' compensation data

OBJECTIVE

Examine uses of US workers' compensation (WC) data for occupational safety and health purposes.

METHODS

This article is a summary of the proceedings from an invitational workshop held in September 2009 to discuss the use of WC data for occupational safety and health prevention purposes.

RESULTS

Workers' compensation data systems, although limited in many ways, contain information such as medical treatments, their costs and outcomes, and disability causes that are unavailable from national occupational surveillance sources.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite their limitations, WC records are collected in a manner consistent with many occupational health and safety surveillance needs. Reports are available on the use of WC data for surveillance and research purposes such as estimating the frequency, magnitude, severity, and cost of compensated injuries. Inconsistencies in WC data can limit generalization of research results.