Are You Prepared For An ‘Active Shooter’ Event At Your Contact Center?

Sponsored by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) – September is National Emergency Preparedness Month – encouraging individuals & business to take steps to prepare for emergencies.

Cybersecurity breaches / fires / floods / severe weather / earthquakes / pandemics are just some of the emergencies Contact Center employers need to prepare for.

The Risk From Workplace Violence Continues To Grow

In the United States there were roughly 2.6 million victims of workplace violence in 2022 – up 30% since the Covid19 lockdowns.

• Workplace violence fatalities now account for nearly 10% of all deadly work injuries.
• The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) defines ‘Active Shooter’ events as the killing of 1 or more people on the job – up 22% since the Covid19 lockdowns.
• While gun violence is one form of deadly work event – knifings & blunt object attacks have also become more common since the Covid19 lockdowns.
• Approximately 396,000 aggravated assaults occurred in the workplace last year.
• Roughly 51,000 rapes and sexual assaults happened in U.S. workplaces in 2022.

Contact Center Workplace Violence Is Becoming More Common

Contact Center workplace violence typically involves one of three scenarios:

• A Customer Service Representative (CSR) is the ‘Active Aggressor’.
• A CSR is the target of an ‘Active Aggressor’ – often connected to domestic abuse / personal disputes.
• A Supervisor / Manager / Human Resources (HR) team member is the target of an ‘Active Aggressor’.

Some recent examples:

• 11 members of the Virginia Beach, VA Public Utilities Call Center were gunned down by another CSR on their team.
• In an apparent ‘Lover's Quarrel’ between 2 male coworkers at a Portland, OR Contact Center – one CSR shot the other dead in the facility’s parking lot.
• At the end of her shift – a 20 year old woman was shot dead by her ex boyfriend in the parking lot of the Lubbock, TX Contact Center where she worked.
• In Dallas, TX – a Supervisor called one of her team into a private conference room and informed him that due to job performance issues he was being fired for cause. Tragically – the meeting turned into a Murder/Suicide – when the terminated employee shot & killed the Supervisor before turning the handgun on himself.
• In Greensboro, NC – a CSR was terminated with a phone call & eMail from HR due to attendance issues. The CSR returned to the Contact Center – shot a single round into a locked glass door to gain entry – then took 3 HR employees hostage until she was taken into custody by police.
• The CEO of a Scottsdale, AZ Contact Center was shot dead in his office after a workplace dispute with a vendor. Two other coworkers were critically injured.
• In Overland Park, KS – a night shift CSR had an irate caller tell her that “he had guns … and was planning on being in the parking lot when she got off shift”. Fortunately – the Site Manager & local law enforcement acted quickly.

Domestic disputes/abuse often spill over into the workplace – and have been identified as key factors in the shooting and stabbing murders of female CSRs – mostly in company parking lots.

Women CSRs are being killed outside the Contact Center because it’s easy to find them there.

The most dangerous time for victims of domestic abuse is when they try to leave the relationship.

A woman leaving a relationship can find new living arrangements & change her phone number – but she’ll probably keep going to her same Contact Center job – and the workplace may be the first place an ‘Active Aggressor’ comes looking.

Train Your CSRs So They Know How To Instinctively Respond Using Their Best Judgment If There Is An ‘Active Shooter’ Or Other Deadly Work Event

All employees should view the DHS video ‘Run > Hide > Fight’:

‘Run > Hide > Fight’ training is simple & easy to remember.

It builds on the natural human reaction to ‘Fight or Flight’ in an emergency situation.

With slight variation on our natural responses – and through minimal training – ‘Run > Hide > Fight’ provides potential life saving options that can make the difference between life or death in an ‘Active Shooter’ or other deadly work event situation.

Your Contact Center Needs A Workplace Critical Incident Protocol (WCIP) – An Emergency Action Plan To Address ‘Active Shooter’ & Other Deadly Work Event Situations

Here’s a link to the WCIP Planning Guide from The US Dept of Homeland Security:

You may also want to contact local law enforcement. Typically they’re more than willing to help your team craft protocol & employee training programs.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) general duty clause – Section 5(a)(1) – requires employers to furnish a workplace free from recognized hazards that cause or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm.

This includes the hazard of an ‘Active Shooter’ or other deadly work event.

Failure to take steps to minimize this risk could result in the finding of an OSHA violation – which includes fines – and a high likelihood of a civil lawsuit.

In recent lawsuits – ‘Active Shooter’ and other deadly work event situations have been judged ‘Recognizable Workplace Hazards’.

These court rulings put the burden on employers to provide training on how to recognize ‘Active Shooter’ and other deadly work event scenarios & how to respond.?

If the training isn’t provided – it opens the door for a civil liability negligence lawsuit.

A ‘Duty of Care’

Contact Center employers have a ‘Duty of Care’ to maintain a secure environment for their staff – and in the event of a deadly attack they could be held liable for regulatory and civil actions.

There are challenges to securing a Contact Center facility – where employees come and go frequently – particularly stand alone 24x7x365 sites – often located in industrial or sparsely populated office park areas.

Contact Centers need to push their security out to their parking lot perimeters – because they’re particularly susceptible to ‘Lone Attackers’ – who can lurk in parking areas relatively unchallenged.

CSRs should be encouraged to use a buddy system – so people aren't walking out to their cars on their own.?

Try to get CSRs to leave the building together in groups – and have them try to park close to each other.

Open and well lit parking lots with good visibility in all directions help – and ideally parking lots with controlled access & security patrols.

Monitoring cameras are helpful too – as are panic buttons on lamp poles.

Any Threat Against Any Contact Center Staff Member Should Be Taken Seriously

While building security staff are usually the first line of defense – in order to minimize risks – Managers & Supervisors should be trained for coaching / conflict resolution – and interpersonal / counselling skills – in order to spot & report warning signs – with the goal of preventing ‘Active Shooter’ and other deadly work event situations from happening in the first place.

CSRs should be encouraged to contact HR in the event of domestic disputes/abuse in their personal lives. This notice can also assist security to be on heightened alert for any signs of trouble.

Recent ‘Active Shooter’ research indicates that there is usually a substantial time span of possible threat detection – beginning when the individual initially forms the intent to commit violence.

Whether these threats are posted on social media – verbal or written – having an understanding of potential threats is often half the battle when it comes to preventing attacks.

Usually it’s not a complete surprise to all the people of an organization when someone chooses a gun / knife / blunt object to do their talking.

Although not always the case – many times there are warning signs & strong clues to what the ‘Active Shooter’ was thinking long before they actually use violence to be heard.

Other signs of potential workplace violence might include:

• threatening verbal confrontations
• sexual harassment
• workplace bullying
• moodiness
• symptoms of withdrawal or other unusual behavior

If An ‘Active Shooter’ Or Other Deadly Work Event Occurred At Your Contact Center – Would Your CSRs Know What To Do?

Workplace violence isn’t new – but it is on the rise – and it's unwise for Contact Center employers to disregard the fact that these situations can and do happen.

In today’s workplace – where the risk of violence and serious personal injury on the job is increasing – employers need to take steps to minimize these hazards.

Inaction and lack of preparation are not viable options.

Don’t wait until it’s too late.

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