Workplace Violence & De-escalation

Resources Help Prevent Violence in the Workplace

The workplace is not immune to the potential for violence. Employers and employees can be prepared to deal with a threat or an actual event of violence. In addition to facility security measures to prevent or minimize an act of violence, having staff with skills to de-escalate a situation is a valuable technique to promote a safe workplace.

What Is De-escalation?

De-escalation is a communication technique designed to reduce conflict, anger and the potential for future aggression or violence. Emotionally charged situations can escalate quickly, but well-informed and trained employees can help prevent this from happening.

MCIT and other organizations offer no- or low-cost resources to train employees in workplace violence prevention and de-escalation techniques. Others offer assistance with premises security issues.

Verbal argument between two business people in the workplace.

MCIT Resources

Videos Offer Best Practices for Employees to Help Reduce Conflict in the Workplace

MCIT provides the following employee training DVDs at no cost for members to borrow.

  • Conflicts in the Workplace: Sources and Solutions: Acknowledges common sources of workplace conflict, such as gossip, defensiveness, dwelling on it, bullying and assuming the worst. Then it gives solutions and specific techniques for resolving conflicts. A study guide is included with the materials.
  • Customer Service: Examines the principles of successful customer service for the public sector. The video encourages the creation of a positive atmosphere by being calm, patient, consistent and helpful. It helps viewers learn how to minimize unnecessary frustration.
  • Dealing with Difficult Citizens: Helps government employees understand and prepare to successfully calm emotionally charged situations with difficult citizens. The video follows five situations from the beginning of the incident to its successful conclusion.
  • Street Smart from 9 to 5 (3 episode series): This series of three videos (Defusing the Explosive Customer, Managing Employee Hostility and Responding to Violence at Work) focuses on skills to deal with angry customers, co-workers and the public at large. The videos offer techniques to defuse hostile or explosive behavior before violence erupts and offers tips for increasing personal safety if an individual were to become assaultive. It is recommended that the three-volume series be viewed together.
  • Workplace Violence: The Early Warning Signs: Experience shows that early attention to the warning signs for targeted workplace violence not only can make workplaces safer but also can improve morale and productivity by minimizing fear and disruption. This video details 10 warning signs, providing examples, and educates employees about the importance of reporting any concerns.
Borrow Video

Articles Highlight Risks and Provide Management Recommendations

Civilian Employees and Weapons on the Job: Allowing civilian employees to carry weapons on the job, such as stun guns and pepper spray, may cause more problems than the safety they are supposed to provide. This article examines the risks of civilian employees’ carrying weapons while on the job.

Pepper Spray in the Workplace: Law enforcement often carry pepper spray to be used as a weapon or to defuse a difficult situation. However, MCIT members must consider the prudence of allowing other employees to carry the spray while on the job.

Public Building Security Assessments: When considering engaging an expert to evaluate the security of public facilities, an organization should evaluate the impact of that assessment on the organization’s liability.

Other Organizations Offer Services and Programs

DLI’s Workplace Violence Prevention Resource Center

Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry Workplace Safety Consultation works with employers and employees to increase their understanding of workplace violence in a way that emphasizes prevention and voluntary compliance. The office’s Workplace Violence Prevention Resource Center provides consultation, outreach and training at no cost to county and municipal organizations. The office’s website includes:

Courts and Buildings Security Support

The Minnesota Sheriffs’ Association can assist member counties with courts and building security issues, including training about security awareness and performing security assessments.

Members can contact the Sheriffs’ Association to learn more about how it can assist with a county’s security concerns:

MCIT Members Have Minnesota Safety Council Membership, Access to Resources

Members of Minnesota Counties Intergovernmental Trust receive a membership with the Minnesota Safety Council, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to preventing unintentional injuries. Minnesota Safety Council membership offers access to no-cost or discounted services:

  • Training courses
  • Consultation
  • Training videos (DVDs and streaming)
  • Policy development assistance
  • Fact sheets and other training or awareness materials
  • Newsletters
Go to Minnesota Safety Council

Federal Agency Works with Local Governments

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security works with local governments to enhance the security and resilience of the nation’s critical infrastructure and to prepare for and recover from a variety of hazards. This include:

  • Active Shooter Preparedness Program: This program is designed to enhance preparedness through a “whole community” approach. Materials include two videos:
    • Options for Consideration: An active shooter preparedness video that demonstrates possible actions to take if confronted with an active shooter scenario. The video also shows how to assist authorities once law enforcement enters the scene.
    • Active Shooter Emergency Action Plan: The video describes fundamental concepts of developing an emergency action plan for an active shooter scenario. The instructive video guides viewers through important considerations of emergency action plan development using the first-hand perspectives of active shooter survivors, first responder personnel and other subject matter experts who share their unique insights.
  • Responding to a bomb threat: Bomb threats or suspicious items must be taken seriously. Learning to quickly and safely respond to a bomb threat could save lives. This section of the Homeland Security website offers:
    • Information about what to do if someone receives a bomb threat
    • Information about what to do if someone finds a suspicious item
    • Guidance for developing a plan for facility owners and mangers
    • Bomb threat checklist
    • Bomb threat training video
    • Additional resources for local law enforcement and first responders

EAP Provides Support for Difficult Situations

The Employee Assistance Program offers services to assist with difficult circumstances:

  • Counseling Services for Personal Concerns: Personal challenges may affect an employee’s work performance. The EAP provides no-cost, short-term counseling to MCIT member employees, officials, their spouses and dependents.
  • 24-Hour Supervisor Coaching: The EAP offers consultation to supervisors 24 hours a day at no cost. This phone-based service is designed to help members sort through concerns and find the best way to respond to employees and manage difficult workplace situations, including issues of conflict.
  • Critical Incident Stress Debriefing: When a traumatic event affects the workplace, members can request an EAP counselor to visit the workplace and meet with those who experienced the event and help them cope with it. This is a fee-based service.