Fall 2017

Fall 2017  •  PENNSYLVANIA RESTAURANT & LODGING matters  • 9 THE FREQUENCY WITH WHICH EPISODES OF PHYSICAL VIOLENCE, aggressive behavior, harassment—sexual or otherwise—bullying, and intimidation are occurring in the workplace has reached a level of epidemic proportions. Research conducted and compiled by the National Institute for Occupational Safety & Health has repeatedly shown that no business, industry, or market segment will be immune from issues of workplace violence. The number one threat to businesses as surveyed by the Pinkerton Detective Agency is workplace violence. According to the research, 18,000 employees are assaulted on the job in the United States each week. Additionally, 20 employees are murdered on the job each week. Even more alarming is the fact that 74 percent of these assaults are perpetrated by an individual who is known to one or more people at the company and, significantly enough, of the 74 percent, 40 percent of the workplace violence assaults are perpetrated as a direct result of domestic and intimate violence finding its way into the workplace. BEHAVIORAL BASELINE Changes in an individual’s personality, general behavioral characteristics, how they interact with others, along with their overall demeanor will prove to be your best indication that a personal problem, a problem which will typically lead to behavioral issues and performance problems at work, has developed with one of your employees. However; to recognize, respond, and intervene to any of these anomalies you must have developed a basic knowledge and understanding of your employee’s behavioral baseline. Behavioral baseline is the employee’s normal, anticipated, and consistent behavior which is experienced by your employees, supervisors, and managers on a day-to-day basis. Would you be able to recognize the warning signs associated with the deterioration of an employee’s behavior, overall disposition, and performance—a deterioration which could very well indicate that the employee is experiencing a personal or familial emergency or crisis, which could prove to be a precursor to aggressive behavior or violence? With a clear understanding that the behavior of most individuals will be consistent and, for the most part, predictable—provided you understand your employee’s behavioral baseline and general personality and demeanor— recognizing anomalies in their behavior and performance will provide you with the ability to respond, rather than react, to troublesome developments and changes in behavior or performance. When you are familiar with the behavioral baseline of your employees, the typical behavior you would expect to see or experience on a regular basis, then you will be able to recognize an anomaly when it develops. Changes in behavior—beyond an individual having a bad day—need to be addressed immediately so the nature and scope of the problem impacting the employee and the type of the intervention to implement are properly determined. Job performance, the employee’s interactions with fellow employees, attitude, temperament, and their behavioral changes are the first signs that a problem is developing. Keep in mind that in the early stages, the warning signs may be subtle. All too often these early warning signs are casually and mistakenly dismissed as “they are having a bad day.” However; having a bad day which persists for more than a day or two is a clear indication that something is wrong and that a problem exists or is developing inside or outside the workplace. Recognizing behavioral changes, coupled with a basic knowledge of the warning signs and triggers which have historically preceded acts of workplace aggression or violence, will prove to be an effective early warning system.