Reports detailing escalating violence in society have become an everyday occurrence and appear even more pervasive since the pandemic. Workplaces have also been plagued by this increasing violence and the flactuating conditions on construction worksites make developing a mitigation plan especially challenging.

The US reported more than 37000 injuries from workplace violence in 2020. Today, workplace violance accounts for about 9% of all fatal occupational injuries in the country. in Canada, many provinces have reported upsticks in workplace violence, including British Columbia which has seen workplace violence increase 25% in the past five years.

My question is, what are the major root causes of workplace violences? How it impact on the reputation of a company? What are the precautions to be implement for reducing workpace violences effectively?

I am very sceptical of the post - its topic, spelling and context.

Perhaps a poster who registered in May 2025 might like to consider explaining where in the world they are employed so we can gauge the relevenace of their question to a primarily UK base audience.

English is certainly not a first language which given the subject of the post the USA and Canada is surprising.

Personally I am with Kate in presuming these to be at best wolf whistle statistics and at worst more relevant to a platform based in North America promoting an agenda.

Well a very quick Google took me to this: 

Workplace Violence in Construction | HUB International

So, we have some statistics, but then translated for a construction audience by a company who sells that sector insurance products. 

It's not really in that company's commercial interest to say to their existing or prospective clients that the violence (particularly face on verbal or physical violence) is skewed to other sectors.

I do get regular email bulletins from Canada. I have noticed comment on an increase in violence at work and legislative measures being considered in some Canadian provinces, but generally the narrative has been on the sectors where violence at work has been more prominent for a very long time. There are going to be occasional fights on Canadian construction sites just as there are in the UK. Occasionally people will break into construction sites in Canada and threaten or exact violence just as they have in the UK, but this is a sector where it is never likely to be a top ten issue in terms of the risk profile.

My guess is that actually the risk of violence is greater in terms of worker v member of the public. Member of the public has the audacity to say e.g. "please could you stop bombing stuff down from that scaffold". Response - possibly not permitted on this platform!.

Construction tends to be a very visible sector and the public sometimes intervene often with insufficient understanding of what may be appropriate (not the bombing!). So the workers get frustrated and tell the people to mind their own business. Not helped by lots of threads on e.g. LinkedIn showing yet another incredibly "dangerous" construction site.

P

Hi Kate

Actually the 9% of workplace fatalities in the US does seem to be based on official OSHA statistics from 2023.

Workplace Violence - Overview | Occupational Safety and Health Administration

So, if there is e.g. some gang warfare about drugs and a drive by shooting and a shop worker is killed (even though they may just be in the wrong place at the wrong time) that is going to up the percentage of OSHA recordable deaths.

 I have heard, anecdotally, that a lot of these incidents involve workers in the meat packing industries. They are poorly paid, on zero hours contracts paid piece rate, working on lines that run too fast, working shoulder to shoulder with some not allowed to take toilet breaks in a 10 hour or more shift and they all have really sharp knives.  It’s the very definition of carnage.

AK, hmmm......

It seems that violence also extends to meat packers beyond the workplace.

Violence Translating Outside the Slaughterhouse | New Roots Institute

May be some in the US think that if ICE are sent in, then lots of US born people will take over the jobs and violence will drop both inside and beyond the factories.

Hello everyone,

For me, workplace violence is a complex issue, and addressing it effectively requires understanding its deep-seated causes and its broader impact.

Workplace violence arise from a combination of individual, organizational, and social factors. On a construction site, these factors are often amplified by fluctuating project conditions and high-pressure environments.

Organizational Factors such as ineffective leadership, lack of training, and tolerance of disrespectful behavior. lack of reporting mechanisms, no security, or poor lighting. understaffing, unrealistic deadlines, or job insecurity.

Environmental Factors such as Working alone, in high-crime areas, or handling cash/valuables, and interacting with unpredictable or distressed individuals.

Individual Factors such as financial stress, substance abuse, untreated mental health conditions, or poor conflict resolution skills, past grievances, bullying, or a perceived sense of unfairness.

Some control measures can be implemented such as:

1. Establish a Strong Policy and Culture- Zero Tolerance Policy, Commitment from Leadership, and Reporting Mechanisms.

2. Carrying out Risk Assessment and Environmental Controls- Site-Specific Workplace Violence Risk Assessment and Improve Environmental Design and Engineering

3. Enhancing Training and Interpersonal Skills- Provide regular, mandatory training for all employees, Recognize that personal stress is a root cause.

4. Post-Incident Response- Systematically investigate every incident, including near-misses, to identify and address the true root cause, not just the immediate trigger and provide immediate medical, psychological, and security support to any employee involved in a violent incident.

Its a very complex issue and happening many times on construction site ,in my opinion major reasons includes

1)Work stress deadlines and blame game.

2)Personal stress regarding family problems 

3)frustration because of problems not been expressed

4)Multi national working environment where not understanding one language and in confusion problem arises.

 It can damage a company’s reputation, employee morale, and customer trust.