Effects of occupational violence
Violence can have a dramatic impact on the health, safety and welfare of workers and cause significant economic and social costs to the victim, their family, the organisation in which they work, and the wider community.
Violence can cause both physical and psychological injury and illness. Victims respond differently to violence, both in terms of the emotions they experience and the time taken to recover from a violent incident. Injury and illness may also occur to a person who observes a violent incident but is not the direct victim.
A person's reaction to a violent incident can depend on a number of factors that include, but are not limited to:
- the nature of the violence they have experienced
- their previous experiences and coping skills
- the assistance they receive and the way they are treated by others including co-workers
- the opportunity to openly discuss their feelings with their colleagues.
Workers in areas where the risk of violence is high may benefit from additional information and training that gives them an appreciation of the ways in which people may react to violent incidents. Such training enables workers to recognise their reactions to violence.
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