Violence at work
The British Crime Survey identifies those at greatest risk of violence at work.
The biggest influence on risk is the type of occupation. The table below sets out
the occupations identified as being at particularly high risk, either of assaults
or threats.
Occupations with above average risks of violence while working, 1994/1996/1998 BCS (based on working adults of working age)
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High risk of assaults
Average risk = 1.2%
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High risk of threats
Average risk = 1.5%
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Security and protective services (11.4%)
Nurses (5.0%)
Care workers (2.8%)
Public transport (2.8%)
Catering/hotels/restaurants (2.6%)
Other education and welfare (2.6%)
Teachers (1.8%)
Retail sales (1.8%)
Management and personnel (1.7%)
Leisure/service providers (1.7%)
Other health professionals (1.4%)
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Public transport (5.6%)
Security and protective services (5.3%)
Other health professionals (4.0%)
Retail sales (3.5%)
Nurses (3.1%)
Management and personnel (2.6%)
Other education and welfare (2.3%)
Catering/hotels/restaurants (2.0%)
Teachers (2.0%)
Cashiers/bank managers/money lenders (2.0%)
Leisure/service providers (1.9%)
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Notes:
Source Combined 1994, 1996 and 1998 sweeps of the BCS. Weighted data.
Measures risks of violence at work in 1993, 1995 and 1997.
Source: Budd, T (1999) Violence at work: Findings from the British Crime Survey
www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs/occ-violencework.pdf
The Survey found that risks were also higher for:
Full-time workers
employees with managerial responsibilities
employees in smaller organizations
the self-employed
those working in late evening or at night
men aged 16-44 (assault) and women aged 16-24 (threats)
workers in the north and in the West Midlands (assault)
Implications
These findings on differing levels of risk point to the importance of targeting
the businesses most at risk and, in particular, targeting repeat victims in developing
crime reduction strategies and interventions.
Action on repeat victimization needs to take account of what is known about the
time courses of repeat victimization, and in particular the short space of time within
which repeat incidents often occur.
In the Scottish Business Crime Survey well over half of all cases of repeat victimisation
took place within eight weeks of the preceding incident.
17.4% of repeat non-residential burglaries in a Merseyside study occurred within
a week of a previous incident and 43% of repeat incidents within one month (compared
to 32.5% of residential repeats)
It also needs to take account of evidence, from the Small Business Crime Initiative,
that problems of chronic victimization may shift, or ‘migrate’ to similar premises
nearby.
Tilley, N & Hopkins, M (1998) Business as Usual: An Evaluation of the Small
Business and Crime Initiative, Police Research Series Paper 95, London, Home Office.
Full report
Summary report
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