[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees
of the Village of North Hills 2-25-2009. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A.
Workplace violence presents a serious occupational
safety hazard for workers; during the last decade homicide was the
third leading cause of death of all workers and the leading cause
of occupational death for women workers.
B.
Examples of high-risk workplaces include health-care
settings, social services, working alone or in small numbers, service
workers, public transportation drivers and many other types of public
employment.
C.
New York State requires certain public employers,
including the Village of North Hills, to perform a workplace evaluation
of each worksite. The evaluation is intended to identify factors which
may place the workforce at risk of occupational assaults or homicides.
This information will be reviewed initially and annually thereafter.
In addition, the Village adopts the written Workplace Violence Prevention
Program contained herein.
D.
This document is designed to assist employers and
workers to more effectively reduce the potential problem of violence
in the workplace.
A.
Workplace violence is physical assault, threatening
behavior or verbal abuse occurring in the work setting.
B.
It is categorized as:
(1)
Nonspecific threats of violence by an employee.
(2)
Specific threats of violence by an employee.
(3)
Threats of violence directed against an employee by
a nonemployee.
(4)
Violent confrontation by a spouse or significant other
with an employee over a personal/domestic dispute.
(5)
Threats or threatening conduct by disgruntled or ex-employees.
(6)
Violent altercations between two employees or employee
and supervisor.
(7)
Multiple assaults by an intruder.
There is no single prescription for reducing
violence in the workplace. Each organization is unique and operates
in a different social and economic environment. In evaluating workplace
safety issues, the Village has considered the organization's culture,
history, size, industry and workforce, and the Village adopts the
following principles.
A.
Harmonious work environment. Creating a culture of
mutual respect can help reduce harassment and hostility in the workplace.
In such a culture, employers strive to communicate openly, give employees
adequate control in their work and provide them with support and recognition.
Conflict and stress are lower when employees feel empowered to work
independently and are motivated to work cooperatively.
B.
Effective policies to protect employees from harassment.
The Village strives to build a culture free of harassment and discrimination,
and has a system in place to address infractions. The Village policy
clearly denounces harassment and states unequivocally that it will
not be tolerated.
C.
Procedures for handling grievances. The Village provides
grievance procedures for reporting complaints of unfair treatment,
discrimination or harassment. Any such procedures will be followed,
and employees should feel confident that concerns will be addressed
promptly and confidentially. Complaints should be provided in writing
to the Village Administrator and/or the Mayor.
D.
Security programs that protect employees. Employers
have a variety of methods for ensuring workers' safety. The Village
regularly evaluates its security programs to determine if they are
meeting employer and employee needs. The Village seeks to make employees
aware of existing security policies and procedures.
E.
Supervisory personnel to recognize signs of a troubled
employee. One way to reduce the potential for workplace violence is
to intervene before an incident reaches a flash point. Supervisory
personnel should recognize signs and symptoms of a potentially violent
employee. Also, supervisory personnel should be sensitive to signs
of possible abuse among employees, such as frequent absences or depression.
F.
Crisis plan. The Village has developed a crisis plan
for dealing with violent incidents. Incidents are to be reported to
the Village Administrator and/or the Mayor, in writing. If it is not
feasible to do so in case of an emergency, a report is to be made
to 911.
A.
Any preventive measure must be based on a thorough
understanding of risk factors associated with the various types of
workplace violence. And, even though our understanding of the factors
which lead to workplace violence is not perfect, sufficient information
is available which, if utilized effectively, can reduce the risk of
workplace violence. However, strong management commitment, and the
day-to-day involvement of department heads, supervisors, employees
and labor unions (if any), is required to reduce the risk of workplace
violence.
B.
If a Village facility is known to be a risk for workplace
violence, the Village will address workplace security hazards.
The Village of North Hills safety program addresses
the hazards known to be associated with the three major types of workplace
violence. Type I workplace violence involves a violent act by an assailant
with no legitimate relationship to the workplace who enters the workplace
to commit a robbery or other criminal act. Type 11 involves a violent
act by a recipient of a service provided by the Village, such as a
resident or customer. Type 111 involves a violent act by a current/former
employee, department head or supervisory personnel, or other person
who has some employment-related involvement with the Village, such
as an employee's spouse or lover, an employee's relative or friend,
or another person who has a dispute with a Village employee.
The program administrator for workplace security
is the Village Administrator, who has the authority and responsibility
for implementing the provisions of this program for the Village. All
department heads and supervisors are responsible for implementing
and maintaining this program in their respective work areas and for
answering employee questions about the program.
A.
The Village Administrator is responsible for ensuring
that all safety and health policies and procedures involving workplace
violence are clearly communicated and understood by all employees.
Department heads and supervisory personnel are expected to enforce
the rules fairly and uniformly.
B.
All employees are responsible for using safe work
practices, for following all directives, policies and procedures,
and for assisting in maintaining a safe and secure work environment.
C.
Pursuant to the Village policy, all Village employees,
including supervisors and managers, are to comply with work practices
that are designed to make the workplace more secure and are not to
engage in verbal threats or physical actions which create a security
hazard for others in the workplace, including:
(1)
Informing employees, supervisors and department heads
of the provisions of this program for workplace security.
(2)
Evaluating the performance of all employees in complying
with the Village's security measures.
(3)
Recognizing employees who perform work practices which
promote security in the workplace.
(4)
Providing training and/or counseling to employees
whose performance in complying with work practices designed to ensure
workplace security is deficient.
(5)
Disciplining workers for failure to comply with workplace
security practices. The following practices ensure employee compliance
with workplace security directives, policies and procedures.
D.
Communication. The Village recognizes that to maintain
a safe, healthy and secure workplace there must be open, two-way communication
between all employees, including supervisors and department heads,
on all workplace safety, health and security issues. The Village has
a communication system designed to encourage a continuous flow of
safety, health and security information between management and our
employees without fear of reprisal and in a form that is readily understandable.
A.
The safety and security of Village employees is important.
Threats, threatening behavior, or acts of violence against employees,
visitors, guests, or other individuals by anyone on Village property
will not be tolerated.
B.
Any person who makes threats, exhibits threatening
behavior, or engages in violent acts on Village property will be removed
from the premises as quickly as safety permits and shall remain off
Village premises pending the outcome of an investigation. The Village's
response to incidents of violence may include suspension and/or termination
of any business relationship, reassignment of job duties, suspension
or termination of employment, and criminal prosecution of those involved.
C.
All Village personnel are responsible for notifying
the contact person designated below of any threats they have witnessed,
received, or have been told that another person has witnessed or received.
Personnel should also report behavior they regard as threatening or
violent if that behavior is job-related or might be carried out on
a company-controlled site.
D.
An employee who applies for or obtains a protective
or restraining order that lists company locations as protected areas
must provide a copy of the petition and declarations used to seek
the order and a copy of any temporary or permanent protective or restraining
order that was granted. The Village has confidentiality procedures
that recognize and respect the privacy of the reporting employee(s)
A.
Designated contact person:[1]
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Title: Village Administrator
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Phone: 516-627-3451
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Location: Village Hall, One Shelter Rock Road,
North Hills, New York.
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[1]
Editor’s Note: The name of the designated contact person
was removed at the request of the Village. The contact person is now
the Village Administrator.
B.
Alternate contact person: In case of emergency, contact
the Nassau County Police Department by calling 911.
