Does your co-worker make you horripilate?
Anger, violence problems on the upswing at worksites
By DEBORAH A. MILES
Do you ever feel angry at work? Or maybe you know a co-worker who has a quick temper. What about the one who swears too much or talks about settling a score.
These are all signs of a “new disease” spreading among worksites. It’s called the chronically angry worker. And according to a Yale/Gallup survey, 23.3 percent of employees are angry all the time.
“Anger at work is a huge seedbed for violence,” said Tia Denenberg, an arbitrator and local judge. “For example, if someone is promised a promotion and then passed by, they feel a lack of respect, betrayed, and less loyal. Their feelings will eventually come out.”
Information such as this was offered at a workplace conflict workshop at the May health and safety conference sponsored by PEF and the state. Richard Denenberg and Mary Ellen Shea also presented the workshop.
“People don’t know what to do when a co-worker becomes confrontational,” Tia Denenberg said.
“We don’t have the skills to intervene in the workplace. When you’re in cubicle row, there is the potential for conflicts to erupt into physical violence. We don’t feel empowered or have the authority to step-in like we do at home when the kids argue. There is this gap in the workplace and it’s a challenge for management and for labor unions,” she said.
WORKING TOGETHER — PEF Division 265 Council Leader Pat Lavin and Division 274 member Steven Willis listen to participants at the workplace conflict workshop at the health and safety conference.
— Photo by Deborah A. Miles
Watch for warning signals
Richard Denenberg, author of “The Violence-Prone Workplace” and a former The New York Times editor, said people fail to respond to early warning signals of an angry person. Signs would include threats, intense temper tantrums, inappropriate language, anything that brings on “horripilation” or making your hair stand on end.
“If someone has the potential of becoming violent or makes you horripilate, employees must get involved to form action plans to protect themselves and others,” he said. “People fear the unknown and management retaliation. Managers need to make people feel safe if they come forward,” he said.
The Society of Human Resource Managers conducted a survey on workplace violence and found more than 55 percent of managers reported violence stemming from personality conflicts, 36 percent from family or marital problems and 24 percent from stress.
Stress is a growing factor in workplace violence, according to Shea, an arbitrator and mediator. She recommended people seek help through the Employees Assistance Program (EAP), especially when they have problems at home.
Jonathan Rosen, PEF director of health and safety, said workplace stress can result from chronic short staffing, mandatory overtime and lack of support by political appointees for certain state programs. He also noted, “The main source of workplace violence in state worksites is agitated inmates, patients and clients.”
Shea said to prevent violence from erupting in the workplace, people have to assess the risk, develop a policy, seek structural change such as prevention and intervention mechanisms and have training programs to encourage responsibility.
Being on the same page
Pat Lavin, PEF Division 265 council leader, was one of the workshop participants in a group that discussed how to assess whether a person is on the verge of becoming violent. The group convened after watching a staged performance involving two co-workers and a perceived threat of violence.
“There is the potential for violence in many state agencies. This is an important issue,” she said. “A lot of information is available on how to deal with workplace conflict, and PEF divisions need to designate health and safety coordinators to disseminate that information to members.”
She said it was good the workshop was a labor-management effort. “It’s important to work together to develop joint solutions, and have everyone on the same page.”
For more information on workplace conflict, call the PEF Health and Safety Department at 1-800-342-4306 ext. 254.
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