Creating an Effective Workplace Violence Plan

If two on-duty employees get into a fight and you’re there to witness it, what would you do? Would your employees know what to do? This is the kind of scenario addressed in a workplace violence plan.

An annual average of 1.3 million nonfatal workplace violent victimizations occurred from 2015 to 2019, according to the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs. Jobs that deal directly with the public aregenerally the most at risk. Despite these statistics, many grocers don’t have workplace violence plans. If they do, they’re often poorly communicated so that employees don’t know what to do if an incident occurs. As critical as it is to have a plan, regular and ongoing training can help keep it top of mind.

[Read more: "EXCLUSIVE: Grocers Not Ready for the Next Crisis, Survey Finds"]

Whether you’re looking to implement a new plan or refresh an existing plan, it’s wise to consider the following points.

Start by Consulting Experts

Because workplace violence events sometimes require law enforcement, contacting your local police department to inquire about relevant ordinances is a helpful first step. Most municipalities have community service officers who gladly support local organizations in their efforts to bolster store safety.

Also consider reaching out to industry associations or even your insurance company for support and resources. Insurance professionals can support their customers’ efforts to reduce their claims — this includes helping them to establish and execute emergency preparedness efforts.

Thankfully, there are many existing resources to help you get started. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Hazard Administration (OSHA) offers these helpful tools to address workplace violence:

• Emergency Preparedness and Response: Getting Started 
• Workplace violence FAQ 
• Recommendations for workplace violence prevention programs in late-night retail establishments

Key Elements to Include in the Plan

Regardless of how effective your deterrence efforts are, some incidents are unavoidable. When I support customers in establishing their plans, I suggest they consider these elements:

1. Examine your termination policy. Take care to ensure the company termination policy treats people with respect to reduce the likelihood of retaliation.
2. Make sure that employees are trained in interpersonal skills and de-escalation. 
3. Offer employees a resource for anonymous reporting. A poster in the breakroom offering a 1-800 number for anonymous reporting could make employees feel confident that their concerns will be addressed without penalty. 

Don’t Undervalue Communication’s Role

While many grocers address some elements of a workplace violence plan in company documentation, many fall short in employee communication efforts. According to the “Food Retailing Industry Speaks 2022” report, the turnover rate for food retail employees in 2021 was 48%. This means that nearly half of your workforce is new each year. You can’t expect that emergency training during onboarding will stick with employees six months later. 

Consider the following approaches:

• Address relevant points during onboarding training.
• Empower your store safety committee to select a new safety-related tip each month to communicate on the breakroom bulletin board.
• Include workplace violence prevention talking points regularly during AM/PM huddles.
• Supply register staff with a short flipchart that they can access quickly if needed.

As a leader, you must be comfortable standing behind your policies and procedures when emergencies happen. When your plan is set, make sure that it’s regularly communicated to employees so that when an issue arises, you know that you’ve done all that you can to protect your employees, customers and business.