Answer

It has been shown that improper personnel selection, training and compensation are contributory factors to employee violence. A formal compensation program is a basic management tool to ensure employee satisfaction and maintain internal and external factors that help attract and retain qualified employees. Various establishments are aware that they need to evaluate current and future positions to create a reasonable compensation policy because wages are known to affect job satisfaction and morale. Workers have shown an increase in productivity when they are rewarded for their efforts and contributions to the company.

To ensure that there are no discrimination issues during the application process, test results are maintained confidentially. It has been proven that by using behavioral trait tests, a business can improve their recruitment process by 38% and by 54% if ability or assessment tests are used. Numerous organizations are becoming increasingly responsible with social concerns, and show support by contracting assessment consultants to do most of their human resource management requirements to validate the application process and follow the EEO standard requirements for employment practices (Assessment, 2009).

There are countless litigation cases between an employer and worker concerning unsafe issues on the job daily, and workplace violence is one of them. Gathering background and criminal information is a strategy that can help identify and reduce unqualified applicants before offering them a position. In 2002, it was estimated that the United States prison system reintegrated 630,000 inmates into the communities and workforce. This indicates that it is important for an organization to take responsibility and implement a valid and reliable assessment process to ensure the safety of employees and management (Matejkovic, 2006). There are those that believe it is an invasion of privacy to perform background checks on applicants and certain (i.e. credit report and criminal check) information should not be accessed. Appropriate information is obtained in a confidential manner to safe guard the applicant and employer. Information that is received will help minimize liabilities associated with employee crimes and neglectful hiring practices.

Employees do not quit the businesses that they work for; they quit the supervision they receive. Some employees take advantage of the apparent weakness of others and hinder managements ability to properly supervise personnel. Supervisors who try to deal with this type of issue typically feel demoralized and do not understand how to handle the situation. This can cause co-workers to feel unsafe on the job and lose confidence in the employers willingness or ability to protect them. During a survey conducted by Northwestern National Life Insurance Company, 25% of employees stated there has been some type of threat, assault, harassment, or violence in the workplace over the past year. This amounts to approximately 2,200,000 employees that have been affected by violence directly at work, and countless others that did not complain to management. According to U.S. Surgeon General Jocelyn Elders, the current evidence indicates that violence should be considered a primary health issue. In terms of litigation however, having a policy for workplace violence does little to convince a jury over employee training programs (Braverman, 1994).

References

Report, H. R. (2012). Fortune 500 Firms Face Unique Pressures Leading to Ethical Lapses, Report Reveals. Retrieved from http://www.bna.com: http://www.bna.com/fortune-500-firms-n12884910891/