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Workplace Risk Assessment

The District/BOCES has conducted a workplace risk assessment consisting of:

  • Examination of records that concern workplace violence incidents,
  • Assessment of policies, practices, and procedures that may impact the risk of workplace violence, and
  • Evaluation of the physical work environment for the presence of factors which may place employees at risk of workplace violence, with the participation of the authorized employee representatives. Although workplace violence can occur in any work setting, some settings or factors may pose a greater degree of risk. Employment situations or factors that may pose a higher risk for the District/BOCES employees include, but are not limited to, the following:
  • Working in public settings
  • Working late night or early morning hours
  • Exchanging money with the public
  • Working alone or in small numbers
  • Working in a setting with uncontrolled access to the workplace
  • Working in a setting where previous security problems have occurred:
    • Having a mobile workplace assignment
    • Working with a population which might expose one to potentially violent persons (e.g. in healthcare, social service, public service or criminal justice settings)
    • Having duties that include the delivery of passengers, goods, or services

Risk factors identified during the examination, assessment and evaluation are listed in Appendix 2 along with the methods and means by which each risk is being addressed. The employer is responsible for addressing all risk factors that their employees are potentially exposed to.

Any incidents that may occur after the implementation of this program must be carefully documented and analyzed in order to make improvements to this program during the required annual review or as necessary.

Control Methods Implemented

Control methods that the District/BOCES will use to prevent workplace violence incidents

Hierarchy of Controls

There are three main types of control measures that may be implemented as part of a safety program to protect employees from recognized hazards. The following types of controls are arranged in order of preference and effectiveness - this is referred to as the “hierarchy of control measures”.

Hierarchy of Controls

  • Engineering controls
  • Administrative controls
  • Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

Engineering controls eliminate or reduce the hazard through substitution or design (possible capital project).

Examples include:

  • Increased lighting
  • Designing secure building access
  • Security hardware
  • Eliminating isolated work areas
  • Minimizing “cash on hand”

Administrative controls eliminate or reduce the hazard through organizational policies, procedures and work practices (staff promulgated action). (Refer to District-Wide School Safety Plan, Code of Conduct, Sexual Harassment Policy, Employee Handbook, other Safety and Health plans, etc.).

Examples include:

  • Increased staffing
  • Employment of safety personnel/SRO, SPO, SSO
  • Developing building access control procedures
  • Cross-shift communication to share information regarding agitated visitors or students
  • Reduction of visitor wait times
  • Provision of personal alarms (examples include: portable/fixed panic alarms)
  • Provision of cell phones/radios
  • Provision of life safety supplies (examples include: first aid kit, stop the bleed kit, etc.)
  • Training (examples include: workplace violence, conflict resolution, de-escalation training, mental health first aid, restraint training (TCI, CPI))
     

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

PPE is generally considered the least desirable form of control, but may be needed to enhance other controls and/or minimize potential injury severity when other controls fail. Reference to special education and student IEPs to determine and develop what types of materials are necessary to protect staff.

Examples include:

  • Eye and face protection (examples include: goggles, face shield)
  • Hand/Arm protection
  • Leg/Foot protection
  • Head protection
     

Prevention

Prevention of violence in the workplace is the responsibility of every employee. The following section focuses on early warning signs and workplace issues that have the potential to trigger violent behavior. Management, employees, and authorized employee representatives should be familiar with the issues below in order to become aware of and to reduce the likelihood of workplace violence.

Early warning signs of potential violence

There is no single “profile” that can identify a potentially dangerous individual. However, certain patterns of behavior and events frequently precede episodes of violence.

A list of indicators of increased risk of violent behavior include, but are not limited to the following:

  • Direct or veiled threats of harm
  • Intimidation, belligerence, bullying or other inappropriate behavior directed at others
  • Numerous conflicts with supervisors and employees; verbal comments indicating expressions of hostility directed at coworkers, supervisors, or others
  • Bringing an unauthorized weapon to work, brandishing a weapon in the workplace, making inappropriate reference to guns or fascination with weapons
  • Fascination with incidents of workplace violence, statements indicating approval of the use of violence to resolve a problem, or statements indicating identification with perpetrators of workplace homicides
  • Statements indicating an increased tone of desperation from the person, feeling that normal interventions to solve the problem will not work, feeling hopeless about a situation at work, with family, financial, and other personal problems
  • Signs of abuse of drugs/alcohol on or off the job
  • Extreme or uncharacteristic changes in behavior or displays of emotion
  • Employees with ongoing domestic difficulties
  • Employees with a temporary order of protection against any staff

These behaviors should be reported to an employee’s supervisor and/or the administrator of this program. Some behaviors may require immediate law enforcement intervention where others may require disciplinary action or indicate a need for an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) referral or other employee assistance, if available.

Workplace issues that may trigger violence

Listed below are two categories of common issues that may trigger workplace violence.

1. Employee issues (some examples include):

  • Negative performance review
  • School Climate/Student behavior
  • Unwelcome change in role due to performance or reorganization issue
  • Criticism of performance
  • Conflict with coworker or supervisor
  • Personal stress outside the workplace
  • Increased workload or pressure, e.g. deadlines, projects, etc.

2. Workplace issues (any of the following may be an employee’s perception of issues):

  • No clearly defined rules of conduct
  • Lack of training
  • Inadequate hiring practices/screening of potential employees
  • Insufficient supervision
  • Lack of discipline or inconsistent discipline in workplace