69% of healthcare workers worry about erratic behavior from patients
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According to a recent Verkada survey, frontline workers in the U.S. are concerned for their safety. The study found that 76% of employers have experienced a security incident in the last year, and a majority of frontline workers feel that the threat of physical harm is on the rise.
More than half (58%) of frontline workers feel that the threat of physical harm is on the rise, and 40% say they are more concerned about personal safety at work than they were a year ago.
Healthcare workers are especially concerned: 69% report worries about aggressive or erratic behavior among patients or visitors, and 59% regularly worry about being assaulted at work. The two biggest sources of concern for retail workers are erratic or aggressive behavior from customers (58%) and theft (58%) and nearly half (49%) of retail workers say theft and vandalism are on the rise.
Sixty-nine percent of leaders or managers report feeling very safe at work and 67% think their direct reports feel equally safe. About a third of workers (37%) feel safe at their workplace.
Gen Z is consistently two times more concerned about safety than their Boomer counterparts. More than 30% of Gen Z workers say they have turned down job opportunities or switched jobs because they've felt vulnerable or at an increased level of risk.
More than half of frontline workers who feel that their jobs do not prioritize employees' physical safety have said they plan to leave in the next year if their employer does not act to improve safety. Two in five frontline workers would quit their job due to safety concerns if they could afford to.
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