OIG Releases Workplace Violence Prevention Audit

OIG Releases Workplace Violence Prevention Audit
By Dan Mooney
NAPS North Central Area Vice President

I recently read the Sept. 15 Postal Service OIG audit of the agency’s Workplace Violence Prevention Program (WVPP). I thought it important to let NAPS members know the findings. The OIG found the overall program effective; however, people were not reporting and using the system as intended, thereby clouding the status of the workplace environment.

The OIG’s objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of the WVPP from fiscal year 2022 through 2024. The OIG conducted virtual interviews in three districts, made site visits to 24 judgmentally selected facilities and interviewed District Threat Assessment Teams, facility managers and employees to understand the prevention program. In addition, the OIG interviewed person-nel from the Workplace Environment Improvement Department to understand the policies and compliance requirements surrounding the program.

Overall, the audit determined the WVPP to be sufficient in providing content and resources to the workforce. However, opportunities exist for the Postal Service to improve reporting and communication on workplace violence incidents.

Specifically, the audit found instances of workplace violence not always reported or documented properly in the Threat Assessment Case Tracking System. Also, district Threat Assessment Teams did not always provide facility managers with supporting documentation and timely communication after incidents occurred.

The Postal Service established its Workplace Violence Prevention Prgram as a way of providing the foundation for a violence-free workplace. During FY22 through FY24, there were 2,646 reported workplace violence incidents nationwide.

Threats accounted for 1,256 (47%) of the incidents. Threats are words or actions intended to intimidate another person or interfere with the performance of their official duties.

Physical assaults were the next-highest reported incidents at 678 (26%), followed by hostile work environment, then suicidal comments. Bullying and sexual assaults rounded out the top-six incidents.

The Workplace Environment Tracking System database provides a nationwide, centralized repository for workplace environment processes. The system has several modules for documenting processes, including the Threat Assessment Case Tracking System, to enter and track incident-specific information for threats.

Facility managers are responsible for timely reporting incidents directly to the district Threat Assessment Team (TAT). The Labor Relations manager is the team lead and will determine if the team should convene to assess the incident and determine next steps to mitigate potential violence.

Other core members of the TAT team include the HR manager, district manager, Safety manager, Senior Plant manager (or designee) and a postal inspector. The core members for each district TAT team meet at least once every three months to review team responsibilities, address unsolved action items and discuss updates on open incidents.

The Postal Service uses the Threat Assessment Case Tracking System to document, process and analyze trends for workplace violence incidents. However, the OIG found instances where District Threat Assessment Teams did not always assess or report potential threats in the system they gleaned from Postal Inspection Service Assault Threat Specialty reports. Furthermore, facility managers inconsistently reported threats to the district teams.

The Postal Inspection Service uses Assault Threat Specialty reports as a fact-finding document whenever it receives a report of an alleged threat or assault against Postal Service employees. The OIG compared alleged threats or assaults from Assault Threat Specialty Reports to the Threat Assessment Case Tracking System in the districts visited and found 525 of 661 (79%) alleged threats or assaults were not entered into the system.

Facility managers, the OIG found, were inconsistently reporting workplace violence incidents to their district Threat Assessment Team. Some facility managers stated they do not report alleged threats to the district team unless the incident includes physical altercations. When workplace violence incidents are not properly reported or documented, it hinders the agency’s ability to properly monitor workplace violence.

The Postal Service’s district Threat Assessment Teams did not always provide supporting documentation or timely communication to facility managers after workplace violence incidents occurred or were reported. The district team should have timely communication with facility managers regarding the outcome memos to keep management informed on plans to alter the conditions or minimize the future risk of violence. The outcome memos provide assurance to facility managers that the initial incident inquiry and risk rating were conducted by the Threat Assessment Team.

Bottom line, make sure you properly report all incidents of workplace violence so they can be documented, investigated and processed completely. This includes getting an outcome memo with the results of incidents.

Stay on the high road; the view and the people are much better.