It's Coming. Are You Ready?

It’s coming. And soon too.

Are you, your employees, and your organization ready for it?

You don’t need a crystal ball in order to see that it’s coming. The handwriting is right there on the wall for everyone to see.  

So what’s coming? This… 

An increased risk for workplace violence incidents from all 4 source types: community, invitee, co-worker, and employee personal connections.  And not just here in California. But across the country.

How do I know this?  

There’s a direct correlation between economic stress and workplace violence. When stress levels rise, workplace violence incidents do too. And stress levels are definitely on the rise.

In this piece, we’ll look at how rising stress levels affect your employees safety from the 4 source types of workplace violence, and what steps you can take now to help employees be safe as violence levels rise.

California requires employers to implement an effective workplace violence prevention program. And the single most important, but least understood, requirement in California’s workplace violence prevention law is that employers must train employees in strategies to avoid physical harm from the specific workplace violence safety hazards they face.

Helping your employees avoid physical harm from violence requires identifying the specific safety threats they face, and training them to avoid physical harm from violence caused by those specific safety threats.

My free training on demystifying strategies to avoid physical harm will take the guesswork out of determining the best strategies to avoid physical harm for you to train your employees in based uipon the specific safety threats they face. It’s pre-recorded so you can watch it when it’s convenient for you. Just click on the link above.  

Why Stress is Rising 

Stress levels increase with uncertainty, and the feeling of a lack of control over your own circumstances.

We’re now seeing job cuts leading to cuts in services happening in real time. They started first in the government sector, but are now happening in the private and community nonprofit sectors too. 

Challenger, Gray & Christmas the global outplacement company that conducts monthly surveys reported that private sector job cuts in February jumped to their highest total for month of February since 2009, and the highest monthly total for any month, since July 2020. 

Private sector job creation has also stalled. Payroll giant ADP’s monthly survey for February 2025 found just 77,000 new private sector jobs created in February. That’s only about half the number anticipated.  

And the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book, often called a snapshot on the economy showed that 8 of 12 districts expienced no econonomic growth or negative economic growth. Then there’s the Atlanta Fed deeply negative GDP estimate for the quarter and the year. Many economists now see a greater likelihood of a recession occurring this year.

Consumer confidence plunged over this past month, and with it consumer spending.

But the ripple effect grows beyond where the job cuts have occurred.

Small businesses, from drycleaners and restaurants, to building contractors and professional services, that provide services to those folks who’ve lost their jobs, will take a hit too.  

And job losses at a time when replacement jobs are scarcer and harder to find, can lead to foreclosures and evictions. 

And people are feeling squeezed by inflation. And it’s not just the price of eggs that have gone up. But many other staples too. And tariffs have added to the risk of higher inflation and of uncertainty.

These stressors feel very real to people. Employers would be wise not to ignore what’s happening. Recognizing a problem in real time allows you to address it head on. 

Economic Stress and Workplace Violence Incidents

So what does this economic uncertainty have to do with workplace violence? 

There’s a direct corollation between stress and violence. Reactivity amps up as stress increases. And that leads to lashing out. 

Individuals and businesses will have to navigate this stressful time on your own. 

Am I making a mountain out of a mole hill? Could this time be different? It might even be worse, because violence has become normalized to a certain extent.

We’re living in an era when the assassin of a healthcare executive is receiving so much “fan” mail in jail that his attorney had to make a public appeal, that due to space limitations in his cell, his fans should cut back the amount of mail they’re sending him.  

And surveys have found that 1 in 5 Amercans now approves of using violence as a way to achieve political goals. 

Looking back at our history, violence rose in conjunction with financial stress many different times. Including, the stagflation of the 1970s, the October 1987 stock market crash, the recessions of the early1990s and early 2000s as well as during the great recession.

Community Sourced Workplace Violence

Community sourced workplace violence increases during times of economic stress right along with robberies, and burglaries. They also rise because reactivity increases due to stress levels expanding raising the risk of conflict between your employees and members of the community around your workplace. Road road rage incidents, seldom thought about in terms of workplace violence, rise during higher stress periods, are an example of increased risk of violence during interactions with the public due to a shortened fuse. And as government services get cut back, and nonprofits who once filled the vacuum when government services are limited, mental health issues become harder to address leading to more mental health related attacks. 

Invitee Sourced Workplace Violence

As stress levels rise among patients, clients, customers, vendors, and others who interact with your employees as part of their work, the level of workplace violence increases too. Reactivity is a main element of this increase, so too is difficulty paying bills for services. And people who feel like they are up against a wall because of financial stress will sometimes turn on those who are trying to help them. That is especially true for healthcare, legal services professionals, and housing professionals. People who are at risk of losing property as a result of financial stressors can lash out at those involved in taking away their property. In addition, an inability to pay for goods or services can lead to an increased likelihood of a conflict that can turn violent. 

Co-worker Sourced Workplace Violence

Co-worker violence is the type of workplace violence most often thought of during financially stressful times. It’s typically thought of as being an issue during layoffs and reductions in force. However, a far greater workplace violence risk comes from day to day stress building up, leading to a flare up over perceived slights. This is often seen because the work environment feels tenser during times of economic stress, with people concerned that they become dispensible to their employer.

And co-worker workplace violence can increase in times of increased financial stress, when an employee believes a co-worker is getting more work hours, and thus, more money, because of a perception of favoritism.  

Employee Personal Connections Sourced Workplace Violence

One of the most pronounced increased risks of violence that occurs during times of financial stress is the increase of domestic violence. So much so that the National Institutes of Health issued position papers on the subject. And since domestic violence can spill over into the workplace, the risk of workplace violence from an employee’s personal connections also increases. This type of workplace violence is most likely to occur in workplaces with a higher percentage of female employees. Family stresses over finances can also result in workplace violence with children and other family members as well. In addition, financial stress can be a source for divorce. And arguments over children, and child support, can lead to a rise in violence incidents between those going through a divorce. 

Steps You Can Take Now to Help Protect Your Employees from Violence During Higher Financial Stress Levels

Recogizing that there’s an increase risk of workplace violence safety hazards is the first step to helping your employees stay safer during a higher stress cycle. 

• It’s important to convey to employees that people they interact with may be more reactive. And to ask if there are any situations that they’re concerned about where heightened reactivity can have an effect. And if so, work with them on approaches to be safe during those situations.
• It can also be a good time to review your workplace violence prevdention plan with your employees including your complaint and investigation processes. And who and how to approach when there are potential safety concerns regardless of the source type of the potential workplace violence safety hazard.
• Make sure that your incident response team knows what to do should an incident occur, whether that’s between co-workers, or involves the other three source types of violence. Conduct a refresher training with them to run through what they need to do if anyone is unclear on their roles and responsibilities.
• It’s also a good time to revisit your trainings, including in strategies to avoid physical harm from workplace violence. Because reactivity is heightenened the likelihood of a physical encounter is greater. And this may mean that in certain situations that de-escalation approaches may be moot and that different approaches to avoiding physical harm may be needed.
• California requires you to conduct trainings annually, so using this time of heightened workplace violence risks to do so helps meet that requirement.
• Finally, discuss with your employees the types of training that they feel would be most beneficial at these stressful times. California requires that your employees have input into the trainings they receive and to get that input annually as well. Using this time to verify that your training approach is on track helps with your compliance processes. 

Unsure if your on the right track to ensuring your employees’ safety during this heightened safety risk time, and want to make sure that you’re complying with California’s workplace violence prevention requirements. Schedule your free consultation here.