Workplace Violence

Workplace violence falls under the general category of criminal violence. As defined by Reiss and Roth, it is behavior by persons against persons that intentionally threatens, attempts, or actually inflicts physical harm. There are other forms of workplace violence, not discussed here, that are psychologically nonviolent: ostracism, leaving offensive messages, aggressive posturing, rude gestures, swearing, shouting, name-calling, innuendo, and deliberate silence. According to Perone, an Australian scholar, workplace violence costs American employers between $4 billion and $6 billion annually.

Perone has also pointed out that workplace violence has multiplier effects throughout society. Among those costs for victims are included costs of meeting immediate and future medical expenses, short- and long-term psychological stress, job displacement, and increased fear of crime. For costs to employers, there is loss of property, increased insurance premiums, legal expenses incurred with liability actions, and loss of clients. For society, there are costs in the form of interpersonal difficulties between the victim and his or her intimate partner, elevated costs to the government health care system, and loss of business confidence.