Introduction
Violence in the workplace is one of the significant problems experienced by various organizational stakeholders, especially employees. Although it is more popular today, the issue existed in the 1980s but received little attention. Both male and female workers experience workplace violence from their fellow employees, employers, and customers. The extensive definition of violence indicates violence exists in different forms. Women are more prone to workplace violence, especially in the form of sexual. However, all workplace personnel requires protection from any violence. The 4 R’s prevention model provides four steps to prevent workplace violence. One way to prevent workplace violence is through the development of organizational policy. Therefore, workplace violence causes a severe impact on the affected and hence should be controlled through the implementation of a zero tolerance for violence policy.
Constitutes and Prevalence
Workplace violence entails controlling or assuming power over another person to further a personal interest or goal within the working environment. Violence exists in verbal, psychological, physical, vandalism, terrorism, sexual, discrimination, and criminal acts (Engel, 2004). These categories are further broken down to the close scope of the actions where verbal abuse could inform of threats and intimidations, rumors, and gossip. Psychological violence could include emotional harassment, bullying, and mobbing (Engel, 2004). Sexual harassment could entail inappropriate touching and sexual gestures and words.
Discrimination and racism in the workplace are considered an act of violence when it causes emotional distress and psychological damage to individuals. Disruptive behavior, abuse of power, and false accusations are among many ways racism and discrimination are considered violent acts (Engel, 2004). Forms of physical violence include sexual assault, assault with a weapon, suicide, and homicide. Acts of terrorism in the workplace could consist of holding people hostage, arson, mass attack, and bombing (Engel, 2004). Workplace violence is prevalent today due to a lack of violence prevention programs. Most organizations operate without established violence prevention policies, and for the few that have, they are hard to implement (Engel, 2004). Other causes include staff shortages, increased work pressure and stress, exposure to violent individuals, and lack of knowledge to solve interpersonal conflicts (Engel, 2004). In general, workplace violence is not limited to physical abuse, as many people assume.
Failure to Report Violence
Despite all the increased cases of workplace violence, many incidences go unreported. The abused are likely to act out of fear if the abuser is influential in the organization. According to Engel (2004), employees fear reporting their supervisors or managers for fear of losing their jobs, blaming, or becoming a target of abuse. Employees may also be reluctant to report abuse because they do not want to look like a snitch or petty before others (Engel, 2004). In most cases, people who snitch on others are not to be trusted and are often secluded, especially in small departments.
Employees may also fail to report violent incidents because they do not know where to report them. Organizations without violence policies may not have established protocols for reporting related incidents (Cloke & Goldsmith, 2000). In other cases, employees who have witnessed instances where no action was taken may be reluctant to report incidents. In cases where the abuse is done by a superior and no physical evidence exists, individuals fail to report it because no one would believe them (Engel, 2004). Lack of knowledge about forms of violence is also another issue. Some employees may assume that emotional-related acts are not forms of abuse and do not warrant reporting.
Impact of Violence on Men, Women, and Others
Workplace violence has a different impact on men, women, and nonbinary. Women are more likely to suffer from sexual violence at work. They are often seen as sexual commodities, and abusers tend to commodify them (Cloke & Goldsmith, 2000). Consequently, more women facing workplace violence will quit their jobs. Others will be moody, least productive, and have increased sick leaves (Cassino & Besen-Cassino, 2019). Gender-based violence against women adversely affects their physical, emotional, and psychological aspects of self. Conversely, men rarely face sexual harassment by physical abuse (Cloke & Goldsmith, 2000). Men are more likely to be beaten, pushed, or slapped at work than women. Many abused people will quit their job without notice (Cassino & Besen-Cassino, 2019). Others do not react at all, thus suffering from psychological distress. Such retained emotions make men become abusers, terrorists or commit suicide. Therefore, the impact of violence is often different for men and women.
Non-binary genders are exposed to sexual harassment and physical abuse. They are also discriminated against based on their claimed genders. These forms of violence affect their psychological aspects, making it difficult to be productive. Non-binary genders also quit their jobs and become moody and less effective (Cassino & Besen-Cassino, 2019). It also becomes a problem for these people to associate with people who discriminate against them professionally. Therefore, they may behave unacceptably and end up being fired.
Effect on Women
Women experiencing workplace violence are emotionally absent, aggressive, take sick leaves, are least productive, and isolated from others. In severe cases of abuse, such as sexual violence, women tend to quit their jobs or seek work transfer (Engel, 2004). The adverse experiences of abuse affect the women’s ability to function normally. When women are sexually abused, they are exposed to sexual diseases such as HIV/AIDS and STDs (Cassino & Besen-Cassino, 2019). In cases of rape, the women may experience long-term trauma and psychological weakness to face sexual-related matters (Cassino & Besen-Cassino, 2019). Furthermore, discriminated women, especially those from minority groups, are often exposed to sexual harassment. According to Cassino and Besen-Cassino (2019), discriminated against and sexually abused women often quit their jobs, thus negatively impacting their economic status. Women leading in various organizations are stereotyped and assumed to be scapegoats for poor performance. According to Bruckmuller and Branscombe (2010), blaming women for poor performance and praising men when there are successful torments women’s emotions. For such reasons, women may find leadership positions not interesting to pursue.
4 R’s of Violence Prevention
Organizational seniors need to know what steps to take to prevent workplace violence. Engel (2004) provides the 4 Rs of violence prevention approach in working environments. The first R is recognition, which entails identifying all forms of violence. The step also involves identifying trivial or offensive behaviors and understanding how abusive habits escalate. The next step is to seek the Roots of the violent practices and what factors trigger them (Engel, 2004). The third step is choosing the most appropriate Response to the problem. This entails selecting the best action to defuse the incident, regain control, and retain calmness. Engel (2004) provides that the step is easy when dealing with one person and complicated when it is a mob or crowd. The fourth and last step is closing the loopholes of the issue to prevent Reoccurrence (Engel, 2004). Putting a strategy to avoid a repetition of an incident requires collaboration and learning of conflict resolution methods for all parties involved.
Addressing Workplace Violence
The organization can take several actions and activities to address workplace violence and contribute to a healthier, safer, and positive working environment. One of the most recommended solutions is establishing and implementing a zero-tolerance for violence policy (Engel, 2004). A zero tolerance for violence policy prohibits any form of violence by anyone, including employees, managers, or even the employer. Although this kind of rule is difficult to implement, it is essential to develop and enforce it. Stobbe (2022) recommends educating all institution stakeholders about conflict resolution methods. Conflicts should be reported in union representation and to human resource management. The disputes can be resolved through collaboration and mediation. Cloke and Goldsmith (2000) ensure that mediating workplace violence works when done by respective experts effectively. However, before intervening, it is critical to listen to both sides of the story and judge accordingly. The authors mention that mediation exercises allow other violated employees to report such incidences (Cloke and Goldsmith, 2000). Furthermore, organizations should encourage reporting violent incidents for employees’ safety and a positive working space.
Conclusion
Violence does cause not only emotional damage in the workplace but also decreases general productivity. Employees are often on the receiving end of violence imposed by their seniors. Such abuses impact different genders differently and must be addressed for better functioning. Alongside using the 4 R’s approach to preventing violence, organizations must develop preventative policies. All the concerned stakeholders should also be educated about various ways of resolving conflicts before they get out of hand. Resolving disputes before they can get to the violent stage offers businesses a safe and healthy environment.
References
Bruckmüller, S., & Branscombe, N. R. (2010). The glass cliff: When and why women are selected as leaders in crisis contexts. British Journal of Social Psychology, 49(3), 433-451. Web.
Cassino, D., & Besen‐Cassino, Y. (2019). Race, threat and workplace sexual harassment: The dynamics of harassment in the United States, 1997–2016. Gender, Work & Organization, 26(9), 1221-1240. Web.
Cloke, K., & Goldsmith, J. (2000). Resolving personal and organizational conflict: Stories of transformation and forgiveness. San Francisco, California: Jossey-Bass.
Engel, F. (2004). Taming the beast: Getting violence out of the workplace. Westmount, Quebec: Ashwell Publishing.
Stobbe, S. (2022). Conflict in the Workplace. 1-18. Winnipeg, Manitoba.