OSHA Contemplates Workplace Violence Standard for Healthcare, Social Assistance Workers
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has published a Request for Information (RFI) as to whether a standard should be developed to address workplace violence in the healthcare and social assistance sectors. The RFI specifically seeks information on issues that might be considered in developing a standard, including its scope and the types of controls that might be required.
OSHA explained that workplace violence in the healthcare and service assistance industries is substantially higher than in all other private sector industries. According to 2014 data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employees in these two industries experienced workplace violence-related injuries more than four times higher than employees in all other private sectors. Psychiatric hospitals have incidence rates over 64 times higher than the private industry as a whole. Nursing and residential care facilities have workplace violence-related injuries 11 times higher than those for the entire private industry.