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Workplace Violence
Discuss employment-law issues such as family leave, overtime, disabilities law, harassment, immigration and termination.
I'm in HR manager in Florida. I was recently attacked and physically assulted by an employee. The employee was arrested and I was left with a black eye. What should I do?
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Forums » Topic Forums » Legal Forum » Workplace Violence
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Workplace Violence
posted at 9/29/2006 6:13 AM EDT
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Posts: 2146
First: 2/15/2006 Last: 9/14/2011 |
I would :
(1) Press charges for assault (as an individual, not as a company) (2) Terminate the employee (I can't see any reason to keep the employee. Because now that you know he can become violent, the company would probably be liable if there were another incident); if you don't have that power, I would go to the person that does. Hopefully your company has a policy against violence in the workplace. If you can't get him terminated, at least request that he be suspended and made to go through anger management counseling prior to returning to work. (3) Get a restraining order to protect yourself personally rr |
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Workplace Violence
posted at 9/29/2006 7:04 AM EDT
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Posts: 80
First: 4/18/2006 Last: 12/2/2008 |
Also, be sure to file some type of incident report or possibly workers' comp. Even if your physical injuries are limited, if you suffer psychological/emotional injury you'll want to make sure you're covered appropriately.
I'm so sorry this happened to you. I hope you're on your way to full recovery, and that you're employer gives you solid support. |
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Workplace Violence
posted at 9/29/2006 7:05 AM EDT
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Posts: 1783
First: 11/11/2003 Last: 5/13/2010 |
Ditto.
Also have your injuries documented via photos, etc. as evidence not only for the assault charge, but also for the UI hearing. I think you and the employee's immediate supervisor should review the events leading up to the assault in hopes of making future incidents less likely. [I am NOT implying that you are in any way at fault for what happened.] Were there warning signs that were missed or not taken seriously? How was it that the employee was able to corner you? How long did it take for someone to come to your assistance? Your workers comp carrier may have resources for assessing/reducing the risk of violence at your facility. You have been through a terrible trauma. You should consider contacting your EAP to help you with processing the incident. |
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Workplace Violence
posted at 9/29/2006 8:27 AM EDT
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Posts: 18
First: 4/19/2004 Last: 4/12/2007 |
It wasn't fun. But, it turns out the EE has a history of violence that includes battery on a law enforcement officer. He passed our background checks because it wasn't local. He's spent more than 6 years in jail for violence. |
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Workplace Violence
posted at 9/29/2006 8:35 AM EDT
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Posts: 89
First: 4/12/2006 Last: 8/8/2007 |
Now that you know this information and have had this horrible experience I would make a formal request for his immediate termination. Otherwise your employer has a negligent retention issue looming (for which at least you could sue them). And you don't need to see this freak every day. Someone above suggested a restraining order, please be sure to follow up on that. |
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