d. Successful company violence prevention programs usually start by forming a planning group that may also act as a threat response team that more directly response to incidents.

a. It is a good practice to involve recognized unions up-front, before decisions are made, so that they can have an opportunity both to express employees' concerns and to bring to bear their expertise and knowledge.

a. Type I violence involves verbal threats, threatening behavior or physical assaults by an assailant who has no legitimate business relationship to the workplace.

c. In Type III violence, committing a threat or assault by an individual may be an attempt to seek revenge for what is perceived as unfair treatment.

d. The person causing Type II violence is either the recipient or object of a service provided by workplace. He/she is a current or former client, passenger, or customer.

b. A risk factor is a condition or circumstance that may increase the likelihood of violence occurring in a particular setting.

c. Studies indicate that all of the below increase the probability of violence in the workplace, except work in a union shop.

d. Acceptable policies regarding visitor access within business facilities would not generally include body searches (Post 9/11 there are exceptions to this policy in locations such as airports, etc.)

a. Companies do have an inherent right to take action against employees who engage in disruptive or threatening behavior whether or not they have issued a written policy statement.

What are some of the advantages of formal policies? It informs employees that the violence policy covers intimidation, harassment, and other inappropriate behavior that threatens or frightens them; encourages employees to report incidents; informs employees whom to call; and demonstrates senior management's commitment to dealing with reported incidents.

b. A workplace violence policy statement should convey that; all employees are responsible for maintaining a safe and healthful work environment; the policy covers not only acts of physical violence, but harassment, intimidation, and other disruptive behavior; the policy covers incidents involving all interactions between employees at all levels.

a. Another consideration is that definitions are often restrictive and may create legal problems in the future when you are taking disciplinary actions against the perpetrators of workplace violence.

b. If you want to clarify the scope of your organization's concept of one or more of the terms in the policy, you could use examples. For example, you may want to give examples of verbal and non-verbal intimidating behavior.

b. A policy of zero tolerance could create legal problems; might appear to eliminate any flexibility; and it may also discourage early intervention in potentially violent situations.

c. It is seldom advisable to rely on what are inappropriately referred to as profiles or early warning signs to predict violent behavior.

c. The FBI's Profiling and Behavioral Assessment Unit has not identified extreme (not subtle) changes in behaviors as an indicator of increased risk of violent behavior.

a. Engineering controls involve redesigning, installing, substituting materials, equipment, machinery, workstations, etc. (things we use)in the workplace. Examples include installing surveillance cameras, silent alarms, metal detectors, or bullet-proof glass.

a. Management controls would not include improved lighting around parking lots. This is an example of an engineering control.

b. According to the text, it would not be effective to consider obtaining restraining orders to prevent Type I (Criminal Violence).

b. According to the text, it would not be effective to consider posting signs about the amount of money in cash registers to prevent Type III (Employment Relationship).

b. The primary type of training that may be beneficial to all employees is that which concentrates on conflict resolution.

c. All employees should know how to report incidents of violent, intimidating, threatening and other disruptive behavior. All employees should also be provided with phone numbers for quick reference during a crisis or an emergency.

a. Practice exercises can help the staff understand each other's responses to various situations so that there is no confusion or misunderstanding during an actual incident. In addition, practice exercises can prepare the staff to conduct supervisory training.

a. Yes, supervisor training should emphasize encouraging employees to report incidents in which they feel threatened for any reason by anyone inside or outside the organization.

c. Do not attempt to bargain with a threatening individual to de-escalate potentially violent situations in your daily interactions with people.

d. Some companies use hotlines. Some arrange for a member of a team to take the calls, usually a specialist from Human Resources or Security. Other companies require employees to report incidents to their supervisor (or to any company supervisor), who in turn reports these incidents to Human Resources or Security.

b. Your company policy may require employees to report all threats or incidents of violence. If you institute such a policy, you must be ready to deal with the situation. The threat incident report will be used by the company to assess the safety of the workplace, and to decide upon a plan of action.

a. Absolutely. When an incident occurs, the employer should bring together all the necessary resources, which may include help from outside the company.

b. There are three basic types of investigations in a violence prevention program: Threat assessment investigation; Administrative investigation; and the Criminal investigation.

b. Ensure that criminal prosecutions are not compromised. Criminal prosecutions must not be compromised by actions taken during administrative investigations. It is necessary to ensure that the administrative investigator, management, and all members of an incident response team understand that actions taken during an administrative investigation may compromise potential criminal prosecutions.

c. Immediately after an assault occurs, an employer should focus first on providing for the medical and psychological needs of all affected employees.

c. All affected employees should be included in a debriefing so that the cause of the violence and expectations can be discussed, a plan of action can be addressed, and those needing further counseling can be identified.

d. To prevent further incidents from occurring and to show their support of the victims, employers should support prosecution of offenders. Accommodate employees after a violent incident in order for them to make court appearances and work with the prosecution. Cooperate with law enforcement authorities to help identify and prosecute offenders through the use of any and all means at your disposal, such as “Crime Stoppers,” rewards, etc.

b. Since management bears the brunt of responsibility after a violent incident, and can find itself dealing with unfamiliar challenges under high stress, the EAP can be very helpful in facilitating an optimal response.

a. To alleviate anxiety and reduce misinformation, keep the lines of communication open between labor and management.

b. One essential element that cannot be overlooked is to evaluate the violence prevention program on a scheduled basis, and immediately after an incident has occurred. If the program is not evaluated at least annually, this and other problems may never be detected.

c. The communications procedure is not listed as an important process and procedure to analyze in the violence prevention program review.

a. Yes, the violence prevention program policies should be both informative and directive.

c. It's a good idea to include local law enforcement representatives, legal staff, Oregon OSHA consultants, insurer, or private consultants and/or other expert third-party experts to evaluate program processes and procedures.

b. After an incident occurs, it is especially important to evaluate the workplace violence prevention program and assess its effectiveness, including: provision of increased worksite protection; consideration of costs and benefits; and quality of counseling potential victims.