The Enemy is Not Us: Unexpected Workplace Violence Trends

Abstract

According to the Department of Justice, an average of 20 workers are murdered and 18,000 assaulted in U.S. workplaces each week. Government employees fell victim to 37 percent of workplace violence incidents despite the fact that they made up only 16 percent of the U.S. workforce between 1992 and 1996. Using insights gained from a survey of 868 full-time employees of a Midwestern municipal government, we explore the intersection of a multitude of violent behaviors including verbal threats, yelling, physical intimidation, hitting/pushing/shoving, and sexual harassment and assault. Our analysis illuminates two important trends: (1) larger organizational norms may play a critical role in the acceptance of workplace aggression and violence, and (2) customers are more likely to be perpetrators of violence and aggressive acts than are co-workers and supervisors.