Ep. 600 Managing and Preventing Workplace Violence Involving Non-Employees

Rancho Mesa’s Alyssa Burley and Client Technology Specialist, Brenda Colby sit down to talk about managing and preventing workplace violence when non-employees are involved.

Show Notes: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe to Rancho Mesa's Newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠

Host: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Alyssa Burley

Guest: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Brenda Colby

Editor: Jadyn Brandt

Music: "Home" by JHS Pedals, “Breaking News Intro” by nem0production

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Transcript

Alyssa Burley: You’re listening to Rancho Mesa’s StudioOne™ podcast, where each week we break down complex insurance and safety topics to help your business thrive.  I’m your host, Alyssa Burley, and I’m joined by Brenda Colby, Client Technology Specialist with Rancho Mesa, and we’re going to talk about managing and preventing workplace violence when non-employees are involved. Brenda, welcome to the show.

Brenda Colby: Thanks Alyssa, happy to be here.

AB: So, we often talk about workplace violence happening inside an office environment or among co-workers. But, something we don’t talk about nearly as much is how employees who work outside of company office can still be at risk of workplace violence, where the perpetrator is not someone who works for the company.

So Brenda, will you talk about some of the job types or industries that could be exposed to this kind of risk, and what that means for employers?

BC: Sure. So, workers who could face an elevated risk of on-the-job violence caused by a non-employee include: utility or maintenance workers performing jobs late at night, social service workers dealing with patients experiencing mental health crises, or construction workers staffed in high-crime areas.

Also, employees who work directly with the public at a school, or healthcare workers who make home visits to see patients are also at risk. And, for employers, incidents that occur in these types of situations are often recordable under the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (or OSHA) guidelines.

AB: Right. So that could mean, if an employee is traveling to and from a jobsite, performing work on a jobsite, or dealing with clients, vendors, or outside contractors when the violence occurs, the incident can be OSHA recordable.

BC: Exactly. And OSHA regulations define any injuries or illnesses that occur while the employee is taking part in activities, quote "in the interest of the employer” are recordable.

AB: Okay. So, what kind of precautionary actions can be taken to keep employees safe and reduce the likelihood of these types of incidents?

BC: Well, OSHA recommends employers establish a zero-tolerance policy. And, the policy should include anyone who may come in contact with employees including patients, clients, visitors, and contractors. Training and policies can be a separate workplace violence prevention program or incorporated into an employee handbook.

AB: Yeah, and you bring up a good point about training, that’s a key piece of the puzzle here when we’re talking about best practices, right?

BC: Absolutely. OSHA advises employers to, ensure employees are properly trained on prevention methods, know what signs to watch for that signal potential violent behavior, and are taught how to react safely and effectively when an incident occurs.

Workplace violence prevention training can be found in both Rancho Mesa’s SafetyOne™ Platform and the RM365 HRAdvantage™ portal under the Trainings tab. And, other workplace violence prevention resources can also be found on the OSHA website, including specific guidance for health and human service workers.

 AB: Okay. Brenda, if listeners have questions about accessing our SafetyOne platform or HR portal training resources on workplace violence prevention, what’s the best way to get in touch with you?

BC: As always, clients can contact me at bcolby@ranchomesa.com or call me directly at (619) 486-6562.

AB: Brenda, thank you for joining me in StudioOne.

BC: Thanks for having me.

AB: Thanks for tuning in to our latest episode produced by StudioOne. If you enjoyed what you heard, please share this episode and subscribe. For more insights like this, visit us at ranchomesa.com and subscribe to our weekly newsletter.