WORKPLACE VIOLENCE AND THE COST-BENEFIT TRADE OFF OF ZERO-TOLERANCE SAFETY POLICIES IN CENTRAL NIGERIAN HOSPITALS

Wurim, Ben Pam

Assistant Chief Accountant

National Directorate of Employment, Plateau State

ABSTRACT

A well written and implemented Workplace violence prevention program, combined with engineering controls, administrative controls and training can reduce workplace violence and the attendant costs in both private and public organisations. The major objective of this paper is to unravel and analyze the cost-benefit trade of implementing zero-tolerance policies and to investigate the potency of such policies in the reduction of workplace violence. Data was collected from a convenient sampling of 103 employees of 4 hospitals and clinics and analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis test statistic. The result showed that early identification of certain risk factors significantly impact violence prevention and protection; zero-tolerance safety policies do not reduce workplace violence and costs; and the costs of implementing zero- tolerance safety policies are greater than the benefits of implementation. The paper recommends that employers should provide safety education for employees, secure the workplace, provide drop safes to limit the amount of cash on hand, instruct employees not to enter any location where they feel unsafe and equip field staff with cellular and hand-held alarms or noise devices.