Retrieved from: American Industrial Hygiene Association
Workplace violence continues to be a serious problem in the United States. Research by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the U.S. Department of Justice revealed that workplace violence is the second leading cause of traumatic injury death on-the-job for men, the leading cause of traumatic injury death on-thejob for women, and accounts for some two million non-fatal injuries per year in the United States.(1,2,3)
Industrial hygienists are concerned with the anticipation, recognition, evaluation, and control of all occupational hazards. Although prevention of workplace violence has not been a major focus of industrial hygiene in the past, AIHA promotes the involvement of industrial hygienists in responding to new and emerging hazards such as this one. AIHA believes that industrial hygienists should collaborate with other workplace professionals, employers, labor unions, government, and researchers in the development and implementation of workplace violence prevention programs. Industrial hygienists have special expertise in developing safety and health programs that may be brought to bear in establishing workplace violence prevention programs. In particular, industrial hygienists have training and skills in evaluating and controlling environmental hazards and in designing and administering health and safety programs that should be adapted to workplace violence prevention.