U.S. Secret Service Issues First Workplace Violence Prevention Guide: In 50 Attacks Studied, 78% of Attackers Acted Strangely First
The National Threat Assessment Center (NTAC) of the U.S. Secret Service published "Preventing Targeted Workplace Violence: A U.S. Secret Service Guide to Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management" on October 21, the first time the Secret Service has issued comprehensive guidance to help organizations build workplace violence prevention programs based on its behavioral threat assessment methodology, adapting methods developed for protecting national leaders to offices, restaurants, hospitals, schools and factories.
The guide's research section examines 50 mass attacks at U.S. workplaces between 2016 and 2020, in which 51 attackers each harmed three or more people. In every incident, the attacker was known or knowable to the targeted workplace beforehand — typically a current or former employee, a worker's family member, a customer, client, patient or visitor. The study found 78 percent of attackers had previously exhibited behavior that concerned others, and 92 percent had experienced noteworthy life stressors within five years of their attack. Citing Bureau of Labor Statistics data, the guide notes 928 U.S. workers died from intentional homicides between 2023 and 2024.
The guide's second part sets out an eight-step framework for building a behavioral threat assessment and management (BTAM) program: commit leadership support for employee safety; establish threat assessment policies and procedures; assemble a multidisciplinary team spanning human resources, security, management, IT, legal and mental health staff; identify and process reports of concerning behaviors; gather information to assess risk; develop risk management strategies; promote a safe and supportive organizational climate; and provide training for all employees.
"Workplace violence is a significant and persistent challenge, harming tens of thousands of people and impacting numerous organizations and communities across the nation each year," NTAC Chief Lina Alathari wrote in the guide. The guide defines targeted workplace violence as a premeditated act of violence at a workplace directed at a specific person, group or location, regardless of motivation and generally unrelated to other criminal activity. NTAC also offers free virtual training for organizations.
Source: GSM · USA
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 美国特勤局人员执行调查任务（资料图）。美国特勤局官方照片，公共领域，经Wikimedia Commons。 / U.S. Secret Service personnel conducting investigations (file photo). Official U.S. Secret Service photo, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
