Your staff face conflict everyday. This could be verbal abuse, physical assualt, bullying, threatening behaviour or just shouting matches. Training them in personal safety and managing conflict will reduce stress, improve morale, save staffing costs and avoid litigation.
At one level conflict means staff negotiating the best deal for themselves or the organisation either as individuals or as members of a team. This can become very stressful - bullying is common.
At a more serious level conflict turns into violence. In the UK, the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) regulations require employers to protect staff from violence at work which is defined as 'Any incident in which a person is abused, threatened or assaulted in circumstances relating to their work'.
Employer's strategies for managing violence at work must include:
- Identifying the types of violence employees might face
- Assessing the risks – environment, jobs, working practices
- Developing a policy and intervention strategy for each type of risk
- Training the staff in implementing the strategies
- Introducing post incident management procedures
- Developing robust security systems
Use this web site as a resource to access useful advice and tips while you develop or upgrade your strategies.
"Wise opened our eyes to the problems our staff were facing and their training has significantly improved staff morale"
Jan Green
" Their consultancy caused us to re-visit our risk assessments which up till then had been kept in a drawer. We managed to revise our procedures - without which we could have serious legal problems"
HR Westminster University
To discuss protecting your staff from violence at work contact us or call 01582 792875.
|
