Faces worth a thousand words Pass the Workplace Violence Bill. Dear Governor Pataki: We are writing to ask you to sign the Workplace Violence Prevention bill (S.6441 Spano/A.9691 John). You have led the fight to reduce violence and crime in our communities; this is your opportunity to reduce violence against public servants. We are the faces of workplace violence. We know firsthand what it’s like to be attacked at work. Each year, thousands of public employees just like us, are attacked by clients. In some cases, these assaults cause career-ending and life-threatening injuries. This bill would establish minimum standards for preventing workplace assaults. The law makes sense for taxpayers as well as public employees. Reducing workplace violence could save as much as $125 million annually in state facilities by reducing lost time and workers’ compensation payments as well as improving productivity. Workplace violence is just as damaging as any other kind of violence: the victims and their families suffer the same pain and trauma as anyone else. Street violence damages our communities. Workplace violence damages the institutions that serve our communities. Last year, you vetoed the Workplace Violence Prevention bill because of technical objections. The bill has been amended to address those objections. Benefits of signing the bill are clear — stronger crime prevention efforts, reduced workers’ compensation and related costs, and improved quality of services. By signing the bill, you will send a strong message to all public employees that the leaders of the state care about them. Send a clear signal that workplace assaults are “not part of-the-job.” Don’t let what happened to us, happen to someone else. Please sign the Workplace Violence Prevention bill. Sincerely, Rhonda Bedow, Jill Dangler, Diane Schrader, Catherine Seguin Pass the Workplace Violence Prevention Bill Download PDF print ad PEF Public Relations ad campaigns This ad was created by the PEF PR department and appeared as a black & white version during the week of June 5, 2006 in The Albany Legislative Gazette,  © Copyright 2006.