Violence in the workplace - The Facts (British retail crime survey).

• The Number of incidents of violence at work rose by 45% in 2005.
• A total on 1.3 million reported incidents.
• 22% of workers who have contact with the public think it is very likely that they would be threatened at work in the next year.
• 10% of workers who have face to face contact with the public think it very likely they would be assulted.
• 67% of workers who have face to face contact with the public have not received any training in how to deal with violent or threatening behaviour.
• An incident of physical violence occurred at 36 out of every 100 retail outlets.
• Threats of violence occurred at 86 per 100.

The impact on employees.

• Physical injury.
• Psychiatric illness.
• High stress levels.
• Poor performance.
• Increased absenteeism.
• Reduced motivation.

The impact on employers.

• Hight staff turnover with related increased recruitment and training costs.
• A rising incidence of compensation claims by employees.
• The risk of prosecution and fines for failing to honour duty of care.