Layoffs and recession take a toll on the psyche and intensify the risk of violence. To counter the threat of workplace violence, many companies have adopted a so-called “zero tolerance” policy. Zero tolerance has appeal because it’s a claim to the moral high ground and makes a company feel like it’s taking a real stand. But is it really a practical solution?

This series will try to answer that question. This week, we’ll examine the law of workplace violence; more precisely, we’ll discuss how OSHA and Canadian OHS laws regulate workplace violence as a hazard.

Defining Our Terms

The term “workplace violence” is a broad one. For purposes of this series, we’ll refer to it as violence taken or threatened by one worker against another, as opposed to a threat from an outside person that might culminate in violence inside the victim’s workplace.

What the Law Requires

Workplace violence and harassment have been around a long time. But it’s only been in the past couple of decades that people have become aware of the problem. This accounts for the relative absence of specific violence protections in workplace safety laws.

OSHA & Workplace Violence

Many states have adopted laws requiring employers to protect employees against the threat of workplace violence. There’s no specific OSHA standard on workplace violence. But employers are still have an OSHA obligation to guard against workplace violation.

The basis of that obligation is the so-called OSHA general duty clause (Section 5(a)(1) of the OSHA statute) which requires employers to provide workers a workplace “free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm.” OSHA has expressly stated that failure to protect against workplace violence may be considered a violation of the general duty clause [OSHA Interpretation Letter, 2/10/92].

Canadian OHS Laws & Workplace Violence

In Canada, there is no national occupational health and safety law like OSHA. Instead, each province has its own OHS laws. But in terms of substance, Canadian workplace violence law follows the same basic pattern as its neighbor to the south. Currently, there are four provinces—Alberta, British Columbia, Prince Edward Island and Saskatchewan—that have adopted specific OHS regulatory requirements covering workplace violence. Quebec has a regulation banning not only violence but psychological harassment in the workplace.

The OHS laws of the other provinces don’t specifically address workplace violence. However, like the OSHA statute, all of the provincial OHS acts contain a “general duty clause” requiring employers to take all reasonable precautions to protect workers’ health and safety. And, like OSHA, the provincial regulatory agencies have interpreted the general duty clause to cover the hazard of workplace violence.

Conclusion

The OSHA and OHS laws thus clearly cover workplace violence. But that’s only the start. Next week, in Part 2 of this series, we’ll look at some of the other laws that impose a duty on employers to protect employees against workplace violence.

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