THREAT ASSESSMENT TEAM

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• THREAT ASSESSMENT TEAM
• (TAT) ORIENTATION

Threat Assessment Team Members
Developed by USPS EAP/WEI Program September 2006
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ORIENTATION AWARENESS

• UPON COMPLETION OF THIS ORIENTATION, THE
• PARTICIPANT SHOULD BE AWARE OF
• USPS commitment to a strategic plan for
  reducing violence in the workplace
• USPS approach to Threat Assessment Team
  process
• Importance of implementing a local Threat
  Assessment Team

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TRAINING OBJECTIVES

• UPON COMPLETION OF THIS ORIENTATION, THE
  PARTICIPANTS SHOULD BE ABLE TO HAVE A WORKING
  KNOWLEDGE OF
• USPS commitment to preventing violence in the
  workplace
• USPS approach to the Threat Assessment Team
  process including

• investigating, identifying and analyzing
  cause(s)
• suggesting a course of action
• maintaining appropriate records

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TRAINING OBJECTIVES

• The importance of implementing a local Threat
  Assessment Team
• Addressing violence prevention issues
• Recognizing situations or conditions which
  could lead to violence
• Understanding the difference between Threat
  Assessment Teams and Emergency Management Teams

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WORKPLACE VIOLENCE

• The US Occupational Safety and Health
  Administration defines workplace violence as the
  following
• Threatening, intimidating, abusive, harassing,
  or violent behavior that is verbal, written, or
  physical toward others, including co-workers,
  customers, contractors, suppliers, and visitors
  to the company
• Physically fighting, including pushing, shoving,
  slapping and punching, on company premises or
  while conducting company business

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WORKPLACE VIOLENCE

• Possessing firearms, explosives, or other
  weapons that are intended by their design or
  function to inflict fatal injury
• Willfully destroying company property or the
  property of others engaged in company business
• Engaging in acts of sabotage designed to damage
  the effectiveness of the company or any
  individual associated with it.

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WORKPLACE VIOLENCE
Any definition of workplace violence must be
broad enough to encompass the full range of
behaviors that can cause injury, damage property,
impede the normal course of work, or make
workers, managers, and customers fear for their
safety.
ASIS International. (2005) Workplace
Violence and Prevention Response. Alexandria, VA
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NON-FATAL WORKPLACE VIOLENCE

• Non-Fatal Workplace Assaults
• Average 33,000 incidents of Workplace Violence
  per week in America
• Majority are simple assaults
• Of all violent crimes, 18 occurred at work
• NIOSH, 1992-1999 BJS, National Crime
  Victimization Survey

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NON-FATAL WORKPLACE VIOLENCE

• Each year 1.7 million workers fell victim to
  non-fatal workplace violence
• Non-fatal violent crime simple or aggravated
  assault, robbery, or rape/sexual assault
• 95 of these 1.7 million incidents were
  simple assaults

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RESEARCH IMPLICATIONS FOR WORKPLACE VIOLENCE

• Knowledge of the scale of workplace violence
  remains incomplete
• Not a consistent system of data collection or
  standardized or uniform definitions
• Data regarding the less severe forms of
  workplace violence are particularly sparse
• Data is also weak with respect to the economic
  and human costs of workplace violence and the
  effectiveness of known strategies

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RESEARCH PROGRAM TRENDS

• Classification System (Type ?, ??, ???, ?V)
  (common to research reviews and programs)
• Categorizes workplace violence incidents
  according to the relationship of the
  perpetrator to the victim (not to be
  associated with our priority 4 rating
  scale)
• Can prove helpful to those seeking to better
  understand the issue
• Helpful in developing prevention and
  response strategies

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RESEARCH PROGRAM TRENDS

• Type ?
• Offender has no legitimate relationship to the
  workplace or the victim and usually enters the
  workplace to commit a criminal action such as a
  robbery or theft.
• This type also includes terrorist and hate
  crimes such as the World Trade Center and the
  Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building attacks.

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RESEARCH PROGRAM TRENDS
Type ?? This offender is the recipient
of some service provided by the victim or
workplace and may be either a current or former
client, patient, or customer.
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RESEARCH PROGRAM TRENDS

• Type ???
• This offender has an employment-related
  involvement with the workplace.
• The act of violence is usually committed by a
  current or former employee, supervisor, or
  manager who has a dispute with another employee
  of the workplace.
• This type of workplace violence is usually
  referred to as the disgruntled employee.

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RESEARCH PROGRAM TRENDS

• Type ?V
• This offender has an indirect involvement with
  the workplace because of a relationship with an
  employee and may be a current or former spouse
  or partner, someone who was in a dating
  relationship with the employee, or a relative or
  friend.
• Usually follows the employee into the workplace
  from the outside, however, the relationship
  could have workplace origins as well.

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National Victim Assistance Academy (2002).
Workplace Violence. Chapter 22. Participants
Resource Guide. U.S. Department of Justice.
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We take pause to honor and remember those postal
employees whom we have lost to the hands of
violence.
Memorial in Edmond, Oklahoma
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HISTORICAL PERSEPCTIVE
National Headlines from USPS History
The next few slides present a limited chronology
of workplace violence incidents and/or
fatalities The list is not intended to be a
comprehensive report or record, the intent is to
review a number of incidents that tended to
capture local and/or national headlines These
slides also provide a backdrop for discussion of
stories and impact from individuals of what might
be their own experience
Note Facilitator can use the supplemental
presentation that provides a brief description as
to the listed incidents
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HISTORICAL PERSEPCTIVE
National Headlines from USPS History
YEAR LOCATION VIOLENCE TOLL
2006 Baker City, OR 1 postal worker killed
2006 Goleta, CA 6 postal workers killed, 1 suicide (previous employee)
2002 Kearny, NJ 1 postal worker killed, 3 wounded
1998 Dallas, TX 1 postal worker killed
1997 Milwaukee, WI 1 postal worker killed, 2 wounded, 1 suicide
1997 Denver, CO 7 postal workers held hostage
1997 Miami Beach, FL 1 civilian killed, 1 civilian wounded, 1 suicide
1996 Las Vegas, NV 1 postal worker killed
1996 Paterson, NJ 1 supervisor wounded by employee
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HISTORICAL PERSEPCTIVE
National Headlines from USPS History
YEAR LOCATION VIOLENCE TOLL
1995 Palatine, IL 2 postal workers wounded by co-worker
1995 City of Industry, CA 1 postal worker killed
1995 Montclair, NJ 4 customers killed, 1 wounded
1993 Dearborn, MI 2 postal workers killed, 2 wounded, 1 suicide
1993 Dana Point, CA 1 postal worker killed, 1 wounded 1 civilian (mother) killed, 4 wounded
1992 Citrus Heights, CA 1 postal worked suicide in post office
1991 Royal Oak, MI 4 postal killed, 6 wounded, 1 suicide, 3 civilians shot
1991 Ridgewood, NJ 3 postal workers killed, 1 civilian killed
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HISTORICAL PERSEPCTIVE
National Headlines from USPS History
YEAR LOCATION VIOLENCE TOLL
1989 Escondido, CA 2 postal workers killed, 1 civilian killed, 1 suicide
1989 Boston, MA Post office sprayed with automatic rifle
1989 Poway, CA 1 postal worked killed himself in post office
1988 New Orleans, LA 1 postal worker killed, 3 wounded, 1 blinded
1988 Chelsea, MA 1 postal worker killed
1986 Edmond, OK 14 postal workers killed, 6 wounded, 1 suicide
1985 New York, NY 1 postal worker wounded
1985 Atlanta, GA 1 postal worker wounded, 2 killed
1983 Anniston, AL 1 postal worker wounded, 1 killed
1983 Johnston, SC 2 postal workers wounded, 1 killed
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WORKPLACE HOMICIDE

• Over the last decade, the number of deaths have
  declined steadily
• Peaked in 1994 at 1,080 deaths
• There were 551 workplace homicides in 2004
  (the most recent year for which data is
  available at this update, statistics updated
  yearly through refresher)
• 551 is a 13 decline from 2003, and a sharp
  decline from a record high of 1,080 in 1994
  (These figures
  exclude the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks)

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WORKPLACE HOMICIDE
1994 - 2005
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WORKPLACE HOMICIDE
Trend Line (1994 2005) Facts
While there was a decline in the rates of
occupational homicide for the health services and
public administration industries, this decline
was not as great as the overall decline in
occupational homicide rates
Jenkins, L. Trends in workplace homicide, U.S.,
1993-2002. The 7th World Conference on Injury
Prevention and Safety Promotion, Vienna, Austria,
June 6th-9th 2004. Vienna, Austria Kuratorium
für Schutz und Sicherheit/Institut Sicher Leben,
2004 Jun 342
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WORKPLACE HOMICIDE
Trend Line (1994 2005) Facts
When looking at the circumstance of the homicide,
only homicides which were robbery related has
demonstrated a significant decline
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WORKPLACE HOMICIDE
Trend Line (1994 2005) Facts
Neither the circumstances of violence by
disgruntled customers/clients, disgruntled
workers/former workers, nor domestic violence
demonstrated a significant decline in the number
of occupational homicides during this period
Hendricks, S. Anderson, K. Jenkins, L. (2005).
Trends in rates of occupational homicides, 2005
National Injury Prevention and Control
Conference, May 9-11, 2005, Denver, Colorado.
Atlanta, GA Centers and Disease Control and
Prevention, 2005 May 105 (for slides 20, 21,
22)
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DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ISWORKPLACE VIOLENCE

• In the case of domestic violence, often what
  starts at home is completed at work
• For employees being stalked, the workplace is
  the one location where the victim can usually
  be found
• Employees can change phone numbers and move,
  but most cant switch jobs to avoid a stalker
• Must also consider if the stalker/abuser is a
  postal employee as well, in the same
  facility/station, on the same shift, etc.

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Kaufer, S. Mattman, J. (2001) Workplace
Violence, A Managers Guide,Workplace Violence
Research Institute, Palm Springs, CA.
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DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

• As the statistics below show, employers can no
  longer consider domestic violence a private
  matter. It is a serious workplace issue that
  affects a companys bottom line.
• 17 of women murdered at work are killed by
  their batterer
• 60,000 incidents of workplace violence involved
  intimate partners
• 74 - 96 of victims are harassed at work by
  their batterer
• 50 of victims missed an average of 3 work days
  per month due to abuse
• 30 - 44 of victims lost at least one job due to
  abuse
• Domestic violence cost businesses between 3 - 5
  billion annually

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VIOLENCE IN AMERICA

• Contributing Factors Why Violence May Occur
• Societal Factors
• drugs and alcohol
• availability of guns
• externalized blame
• reactions to diversity
• social disconnectedness
• economic downturn
• media glorification of violence
• violence themed video games and music

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VIOLENCE IN AMERICA

• Contributing Factors Why Violence May Occur
• Organizational Factors
• job overload
• high stress environment
• reorganization, restructure
• poor labor / management relations
• poor or changing management styles
• poor hiring practices
• inadequate security
• no response to inappropriate behavior
• no employee counseling (EAP)

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VIOLENCE IN AMERICA

• Contributing Factors Why Violence May Occur
• Personal Factors
• family / marital problems
• financial problems
• domestic problems
• drug and/or alcohol abuse
• loss of job, raise or promotion
• loss of relationship
• misdirected affections
• unmanaged stress

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SKETCH OF SOCIAL TRENDS

• Increase in Societal Tolerance of Violence
• Acceptance of violence as a form of
  communication
• (This first statement is a strong statement.
  Take some time for discussion. How do you see
  violence perceived pre- and post- 9/11? What
  about global implications?)
• Increased accessibility to weapons
• Less Control Over Work Environment
• Lack of careers, commitment, loyalty
• Job vs. career
• Downsizing, Re-engineering
• Do more with less
• Loss of middle management

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SKETCH OF SOCIAL TRENDS

• Substance Abuse
• Psychological Factors
• Increasing stress
• Breakdown of support systems
• Nuclear families
• Extended families
• Sense of neighborhood/community
• Change
• Increasing pace of change
• Particularly organizational/work change
• Insatiable electronic media demands (24/7 news,
  internet)

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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE

• PMG Henderson charged the commission to detail
  concrete steps for the Post Office to make the
  safest possible environment for all its
  employees
• Conducted the most comprehensive survey ever
  conducted of workplace violence in our nation

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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE

• Bottom Line Conclusions
• Going Postal is a myth, a bad rap. Postal
  workers are no more likely to physically
  assault, sexually harass, or verbally abuse
  their co-workers than employees in the national
  workforce
• Postal employees are only one third as likely as
  those in the national workforce to be victims of
  homicide at work
• The level of violence throughout the American
  workplace is unacceptably high in the year
  before the study was released 1 in 20 workers
  was physically assaulted, 1 in 6 was sexually
  harassed, and 1 in 3 was verbally abused

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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE

• Three Highest Industrial Homicide Rates (National
  Comparison)
• ? Retail Stores
• ? Public Administration (including police)
• ? Transportation/Mass Transit

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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE

Workplace Homicide Rates By Industry Per 100,000
workers annually, 1992-98
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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE

• USPS Workplace Homicides 1986-2005
• Of 30 incidents
• 16 were perpetrated by postal employees
• 14 perpetrated by non-postal employees
• 55 killed, including 49 postal employees
• 34 were murdered by current or former
  co-workers

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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE

• National Workforce Demographics
• Risk of Victimization Highest Risk
• Men 3 times more likely than women
• Incidence rate rises with age
• Higher for those 65 and older
• African Americans are twice as likely as
  Caucasians

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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE

• USPS Workplace Homicides 1986-2005
• Of the homicides perpetrated by postal employees
  14 out of 16 had
• violent histories
• mental illness
• substance abuse
• and/or criminal convictions

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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE

• Comparison to National Workforce
• Postal employees scored as
• ? less angry
• ? less aggressive
• ? less hostile
• ? less depressed
• ? less stressed
• than those in the national workforce

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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE
Anger USPS vs. national workforce
75
69
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18
7
6
7
3
4
4
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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE

• Comparison to National Workforce
• Postal employees
• have more negative attitudes about work,
  co-workers, and management
• believe they are more likely to be a victim of
  workplace violence
• greatest fears involve other co-workers

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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE

• Comparison to National Workforce
• ? Although postal workers are one-third less
  likely than the national workforce to be victims
  of violence at work, postal workers express six
  times more fear of becoming a victim than
  non-postal employees.

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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE
Comparison to National Workforce
Believe likelier than average worker to be victim
of co-worker violence
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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE

• Comparison to National Workforce
• Postal workers are
• Six times more likely to believe they are at
  greater risk
• What do you believe may be behind this perception
  that is not based on actual facts?

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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE

• Comparison to National Workforce
• Postal workers are
• less likely to agree that their employer takes
• action to protect them
• more likely to say they fear being robbed or
• attacked
• more likely to agree that management tries
• to provoke employees to violence

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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE

• Postal workers are no more likely than those in
  the national workforce to
• physically assault
• sexually harass or
• verbally abuse their co-workers

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CALIFANO COMMISSION ROLE


Victimization by coworkers
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3
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VIOLENCE PREVENTION
Workplace violence is now recognized as a
specific category of violent crime that calls for
distinct responses from employers, law
enforcement, and the community. This
recognition is relatively recent. Prior to the
Edmond shootings, the few research and preventive
efforts that existed were focused on particular
issues .
National Center for the Analysis of Violent
Crime. (2002). Workplace violence issues in
response. Critical Incident Response Group. FBI
Academy, Quantico, Virginia.
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VIOLENCE PREVENTION
The first national data on the incidence of
workplace homicide was published by NIOSH in
1989. This publication demonstrated on a
national basis that homicide was the third
leading cause of occupational injury death,
exceeded only by motor vehicle crashes and
machine related deaths. This document also
identified that homicide was the leading cause of
injury death for women in the workplace. Prior to
this publication, homicide had not been seriously
regarded as an occupational health and safety
issue.
Watson, Eleanor Lynn (2006). Active
inaction-symbolic politics, agenda denial or
incubation period twenty years of U.S. workplace
violence research and prevention activity,
Dissertation, West Virginia University, On-line
Abstract.
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VIOLENCE PREVENTION
Mass murder on the job by disgruntled employees
are media-intensive events. However, these mass
murders, while serious, are relatively infrequent
events. It is the threats, harassment,
bullying, domestic violence, stalking, emotional
abuse, intimidation, and other forms of behavior
and physical violence that, if left unchecked,
may result in more serious violent behavior.
These are the behaviors that supervisors and
managers have to deal with every day.
National Center for the Analysis of Violent
Crime. (2002). Workplace violence issues in
response. Critical Incident Response Group. FBI
Academy, Quantico, Virginia.
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YOU HAVE COMPLETED THE INTRODUCTION MODULE
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