Workplace violence in the US is on the rise this year, a troubling new study found.
One in three employees surveyed said they’d witnessed physical altercations in the workplace in the past five years – up from 25% in 2024, according to the HR compliance training company Traliant, which published the June findings on Wednesday.
A disturbing 15% of the 1,009 respondents said they’d been targets of workplace violence — up from 12% last year, the survey found.
The overwhelming majority of workers – 90% – said that higher-ups at their companies needed to do more to address their safety concerns.
Among the 13% of respondents who said they feel unsafe at work, things like toxic workplace culture, concern of violence and fear of retaliation were the top contributing factors.
“These findings underscore that safety is no longer just a compliance requirement, but a cultural imperative,” Bailey Whitsitt, Traliant’s compliance counsel, said about the findings.
When asked if they felt comfortable in their own ability to de-escalate a physical threat in the workplace, employees’ answers differed across generational lines – with 58% of Baby Boomers and 54% of Gen-Xers saying they felt prepared, compared to just 47% among Millennials and only 41% among Gen-Zers, the survey revealed.
On a brighter note, three in every four employees this year said they’d received training on workplace violence from their employer – up from 70% last year.
The study didn’t distinguish between violence perpetrated between coworkers and an attack such as the one which unfolded on NYC’s Park Avenue July 28, when a stranger from Las Vegas, Shane Tamura, stormed an office building and killed four people.
Whitsitt told The Post that the workplace shooting in Midtown serves as “tragic reminder” that such events are part of a “growing national crisis.”
“Employers have an urgent responsibility to act now with robust plans, training, and a culture that puts safety first.”
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