SHRM26 Debrief · Legal & Compliant HR · #1378

Don’t Be Scared, Be Prepared: The Top Six Ways to Address Workplace Violence

with Jennifer Shaw & Dennis Davis

▶ Watch on the SHRM portal ~85 min, distilled

workplace violence preventionOSHA general duty clausethreat assessment

"Nobody just snaps."

What it was about

Workplace violence prevention requires combining legal compliance with psychological insight across six concrete steps: policy, hazard assessment, training, documentation, continuous evaluation, and legally and psychologically sound execution. Treat it as an ongoing practice, not a box-checking exercise.

By the numbers

one in six violent crimes in this country happens in the workplace

scope of workplace violence in the US

$121 billion to $200 billion a year

estimated annual cost of workplace violence aftermath to American corporations

number one cause of death for women at work is homicide

workplace mortality cause comparison for women, largely tied to domestic violence

Key notes

Create a standalone, written workplace violence policy even if your state doesn't require one, because a written policy signals to employees that the issue is taken seriously and roughly 90-95% of employees will comply once expectations are made clear.
Build separate, tailored response plans for each location or business unit (plant vs. office vs. retail) rather than relying on one generic plan, since generic plans create liability under OSHA's general duty clause and fail to address foreseeable, site-specific hazards.
Train employees to recognize the real warning signs of violence: fascination with weapons, direct or veiled threats, and objectification or dehumanization of others. Skip unreliable cues like being 'quiet' or a 'loner.'

The contrarian takeThe speakers argue that 'see something, say something' and 'active shooter training' are actually counterproductive best practices. The former is too vague to be actionable, and the latter falsely signals that shootings are the only workplace violence that matters, when most of it is verbal, threatening, or bullying behavior.

Take this back Monday

Do this for your team

Swap any 'active shooter' training language for 'active violence' and brief managers on real warning signs: weapon fascination, threats, dehumanizing language.

Say this in your next leadership meeting

Workplace violence prevention isn't a box to check — a written, site-specific policy plus real warning-sign training is what actually holds up legally and protects people.

Watch out for

Giving vague, watered-down 'good' references for employees who committed workplace violence out of fear of liability, which creates risk for the next employer.
Assuming legal compliance (e.g., meeting OSHA's general duty clause) is sufficient without also addressing the psychological dimension of prevention.
Doing an impressive-looking threat assessment or hazard report but never acting on it ('analysis paralysis') or failing to reassess as situations change.

Fun fact · Jennifer Shaw

Jennifer Shaw hosts her own weekly podcast, Workplace Wake-Up, and won NAWBO's 2025 Wise Woman Award.

If this landed, see these

↳ Go deeperSeven Steps for Perfecting Your DocumentationBuilds out the documentation step violence prevention leans on into a full seven-step system.⇄ The counterpointDetecting Deception: Practical Skills for HR ProfessionalsUndercuts confidence in reading behavioral warning signs at all, even the reliable-seeming ones.✦ The unexpected oneThe Chief Disruption Officer: Architecting Tomorrow’s Workforce EcosystemSame push to stop box-checking HR, aimed at redesigning the whole org instead.