Violence Prevention

INTRODUCTION

People working in BC’s Community Social Services sector are essential and critical to the social, physical and financial health of this province. And even though social services is a small percentage of the provincial workforce, a significant percentage of all province-wide WorkSafeBC claims due to “violence” arise out of the healthcare and social services sub-sector. Many studies have shown how this can negatively impact workers’ mental and physical health. From 2019 to 2023, 25.7% of injuries in the social services sector were due to acts of violence. It is also important to note that many incidents of violence either go unreported or do not result in a WorkSafeBC claim. These numbers highlight the urgent need to prevent harassment and violence in the sector. As an organization, CSSHSA believes that by promoting and fostering safe and healthy workplaces, we can create a thriving sector, and well-being for our workers.

Definition of Workplace Violence and Harassment

There are two types of violence behaviour that may occur in social services:

Violent behaviour that is intentional and,
Violence behaviour that is not intentional, due to illness/injury (the aggressor lack the mental capacity to demonstrate intent), often called “aggression”

For our purposes, we will use WorkSafeBC definition of violence and harassment:

Violence means the attempted or actual exercise by a person, other than a worker, of any physical force so as to cause injury to a worker, and includes any threatening statement or behaviour which gives a worker reasonable cause to believe that the worker is at risk of injury.

Two Categories of Violence and Harassment

We also have two categories of violence and harassment: “external” and “internal”

External harassment and violence happen when the source is someone outside the organization, like a client, visitor, or someone from the community.
Internal harassment and violence occur when the source is someone within the organization, like an employer, supervisor, or co-worker.

WORKPLACE HARASSMENT AND VIOLENCE PREVENTION PROGRAM

The development and implementation of a Violence Prevention Program (VPP) in social service workplaces is mandated under the Workers Compensation Act and Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Regulation.

To have an effective harassment and violence prevention program, employers need to have the following in place:

Assign Responsibilities: Clearly define roles to ensure a proactive approach to management of violence and harassment in the workplace
Written Policies: Create an organizational violence prevention policy
Risk Assessment: A process to identify and document the risks of harassment and violence.
Safety Measures and Procedures: Develop actions to reduce or eliminate the risk of harassment and violence and clear guidelines on how to prevent and handle harassment and violence in your workplace
Training: Provide education to workers and supervisors on how to prevent and respond to harassment and violence.
Crisis Management: Implement critical incident stress management, pre-incident education, and post incident support systems offered to support staff affected by workplace violence.
Annual Review: Review the program at least once a year or when there’s a significant change. If any updates are made, employers need to inform workers about the changes.

RISK ASSESSMENT FOR VIOLENCE AND HARASSMENT

All social services organizations that have potential for violence and harassment must carry out a risk assessment and document in a formal way. The goal of the Violence Risk Assessment (VRA) is to identify hazards and risks of violence and harassment in the workplace and develop and document the mitigation strategies.

The Risk Assessment Includes:

Establishing a Violence Risk Assessment (VRA) Team

Gathering information

Conditions of the workplace
Nature of the work and job task analysis
History of harassment and violence
Risks that are common at workplaces that are similar to the employer’s workplace
Issues raised in staff consultations and/or staff survey

Assessing information: determining the impact and probability of risks

Developing control measures applying hierarchy of control

Documenting the results: Create or update a record describing the risk factors and identified risks.

Download our Violence Risk Assessment template and contact us to help get started.

Communicating Risk Of Violence

Sharing information about an individual helps reduce risk to workers. Important details to communicate include:

History of violent behaviors
Cognitive or sensory impairments
Specific triggers
Early signs of escalating behavior

The method of communication depends on the workplace and the work being done. Ensure the information:

Is available to all affected workers and that workers know how and when to access it
Can be updated easily
Is recorded for reference if needed (e.g., for investigating incidents, showing due diligence, or when requested by a WorkSafeBC officer)

Reporting Incidents

All acts of harassment or violence must be reported. An employer must have an incident reporting process in place for:

Injuries to workers;
Incident that could have results in a serious injury to workers (i.e. near misses); and
Incidents where a worker(s) feels threatened by an individual’s behaviour

Investigation

When an employer receives a report or learns about harassment and violence:

A qualified person (not involved in the situation) investigates the issue based on the policies and procedures outlined in the organization’s prevention program.
The investigator prepares a written report with findings and recommendations for corrective actions or other measures.

After receiving the report, the employer:

Reviews the findings and recommendations;
Assesses if changes are needed in the prevention program;
Documents any corrective actions taken or reasons for not taking action; and
Prepares a written summary of the harassment and violence, contributing factors and any corrective actions or reasons for not taking action.

Violence Prevention Training

In social services workplaces, every supervisor and worker needs training that fits the specific environment and needs of the job. This training must cover:

The organization’s program for preventing harassment and violence.
How to identify signs of harassment and violence.
How to respond effectively to incidents of harassment and violence.
Where to find help if needed.
The risks identified in workplace risk assessments that apply to their role.
The actions taken by the employer to reduce or eliminate these risks.
Relevant policies and procedures for their job.

Recommendations

Tailor Training Content: Customize training to reflect the specific conditions and challenges of your organization.
Interactive Sessions: Use role-playing and scenario-based exercises to help workers recognize and handle harassment and violence frequently encountered in their roles.
Regular Updates: Provide ongoing training and refreshers to keep everyone informed about new risks or changes in policies and trends.
Clear Resources: Ensure workers know how to access support and where to find resources related to harassment and violence.
Incorporate Feedback: Collect and use feedback from staff to improve training and address any gaps or concerns.

For summer 2025, CSSHSA plans to launch new VP training tailored to the unique needs of the social services sector. Current recommended training programs include:

MANDT: Focuses on building positive relationships and effective behavior management.
Non-Violence Crisis Intervention (NVCI): Teaches techniques for de-escalating and managing crisis situations safely.
Violence Risk Assessment: Provides strategies for recognizing and responding to violence risks.
Provincial Violence Prevention Curriculum (by Health Authorities or SafeCareBC): Covers prevention, intervention, and support techniques for dealing with harassment and violence.

CSSHSA RESOURCES

VRA Standard template

VRA Standard with appendices

Violence prevention signage templates

CONTACT US

Do you need support with a Violence Risk Assessment? Do you need support developing your Workplace Violence Prevention Program? Book your free consultation today!