Recently, there was a news that trended last week and is still trending concerning a gospel music minister in Nigeria by the name Osinachi Nwachukwu, who died as a result of domestic abuse she suffered at the hands of her husband. A lot of people strongly condemned the husband for carrying out such dastardly acts, and have also advised people who are victims of domestic violence to break out from such marriages/ relationships immediately if they want to stay alive. It is however imperative to note that domestic violence does not happen only in relationships and marriages, but also happens in the workplace.
Research has shown that up to 75 percent of employees are harassed by their employers while at work. Domestic Violence in the workplace is not only limited to physical assault, it can also be seen in cases where an abuser attempts to harass, threaten or injure a victim at work. A lot of employers abuse their staff in the workplace, some go as far as regularly using slaps as a correction mechanism whenever a worker makes a mistake.
I was once told a story by a friend who worked in a 5-star hotel. She disclosed to me the abuse that workers receive daily. According to her, the owner of the hotel is a known violent person who often physically abuses his workers. Whenever they make a mistake or fail to carry out their duties effectively, rather than query them or scold them, he goes as far as beating them up. He often uses a belt or throws punches at them, leaving them with injuries.
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The most surprising thing about this act is that despite the pain and injuries inflicted on these workers, they still report to work daily like nothing happened, without even reporting the incident to the police or any security authority. Probably due to fear of being jobless or broke some choose to overlook the incident. I was perplexed to hear that domestic violence also happens in the workplace because I have never heard of such and it is usually not talked about.
According to research by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, between the years 2011 and 2018, a total of 5,741 injuries resulting from workplace violence were reported. It has been estimated that around 703 Americans per year lose their lives due to workplace domestic violence. Homicide is said to be the leading cause of workplace death for women and the second leading cause of workplace death for workers.
Truth be told, women are the most vulnerable when it comes to workplace violence, which is very much more prevalent than that of men. There are two ways I came up with how employees can handle workplace domestic violence.
Resignation: Just like in marriages and relationships, victims are often advised to quit such relationships. The same should apply to the workplace. Whenever a worker is constantly abused in a workplace or feels threatened, such a person should not hesitate to resign. Still working in such an environment despite the constant abuses might eventually lead to loss of life or physical damage which is not ideal. Workers need to take their life as a priority because it will take no time to replace them if they eventually die in the process.
Report To Security Authorities: Employees who experience workplace domestic violence or experience threats of acts of violence from their employers must deem it fit to report to the police or other security agencies. Most times, reporting employers to security authorities often puts their actions in check which also prevents other workers from experiencing such. Also, employees who are concerned about potentially violent behavior of co-workers should report their concerns to the manager or head of the department before it degenerates into something dangerous so that such a person can either be called to order or dismissed from the workplace.
These points above-mentioned to me are the ideal steps to take for an employee to handle workplace domestic violence. Workplace violence consists of various behaviors, and each industry has acts of workplace violence unique to that industry. It is also important to note that workplace violence is not only limited to acts committed by employers against employees but also violence among co-workers.
