Coworker misbehavior in the workplace has always been especially challenging for the victimized employee(s) and management. This article is about workplace violence and other forms of unwanted behaviors, including assault or attempted assault, or verbal and sexual harassment. For discussion, I prefer to place these acts into two separate categories:
Emotional Abuse: When acts of emotional abuse, bullying, humiliation, etc. take place, such incidents are often not reported by the victim out of fear of backlash or reprisal.
However, don’t think for a single moment that such inactions by the victim who did not report an act of sexual harassment, etc. at work, due to her/his fear of retaliation, will free the employer of their legal responsibilities. Courts have ruled otherwise. The employee may still sue their employer. This was the ruling of a United States federal appeals court. (U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, No. 17-2646, 2018)
Furthermore, it appears that a California bill (A.B. 3080) prevents allowing businesses from forcing their employees to sign arbitration agreements, a practice many employers used to prevent harassment and discrimination lawsuits.
Violent Acts by Coworker: These acts of violence almost always start small and then escalate for a variety of reasons. Here is one very recent example:
. February 2020: A fired employee at a popular Florida mall store shot and killed the store’s manager. According to witnesses, the shooter calmly returned to the store and moved to the area where the manager was standing and fired a bullet into her. One source reported that the suspect “was not well-liked at the store and that multiple employees including [the deceased manager] had filed complaints against him.” Also, a police spokesperson indicated that the suspect had a list of other co-workers. The shooter was later found dead from an apparent suicide.
Usually, there are warning signs for workplace violence (and often many of them) before an individual commits the act. I suggest you keep the below warning signs in mind if you are concerned about any coworker’s behavior. Remember these are only possible warning signs and Do Not necessarily indicate the individual may become violent.
Warning Signs of Potential Coworker Violence:
. Disrespect for authority; Unreasonable demands.
. A negative change in behavior.
. Unsatisfactory work quality.
. Heighten level of passive-aggressive actions.
. Sense of hopelessness.
. Argumentative
. Verbal threats.
If you have concerns… take action! Report your concerns to your supervisor or Human Resources Department. Remember, employers have a legal obligation to provide employees with a safe workplace. $
