Violence at work is defined by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) as “any incident in which a person is abused, threatened or assaulted in circumstances relating to their work”. This can include verbal abuse and threats as well as physical assault.
Employer’s duty of care
An employer is under a general duty to provide a safe workplace and system of work for all its employees. Where an employee’s role clearly puts them at increased risk of possible violence, the employer would be expected to take reasonable precautions to ensure staff safety.
Recording and reporting violence
There are legal obligations to report incidents of violence in the workplace. They further state that any incidents causing death or major injuries to employees or any injury to non-employees must be reported to the appropriate authorities e.g. the police.
The legal issues
Failure to protect employees from the risk of violence in the workplace may place an employer in breach of health and safety law.
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