Blaenau Gwent’s Tai Calon Community Housing has become the first housing association in Wales to sign a charter to end violence at work.
Physical and verbal intimidation of staff in the community and voluntary sector, including housing associations, is a significant problem, which is getting worse. The pioneering charter developed by UNISON, commits Tai Calon to a series of measures to help end the belief that violence and aggression is ‘part of the job’.
A UNISON survey of community and voluntary sector workers across the UK last year, found half had experienced a violent or aggressive incident at work in the preceding two years. Respondents complained of verbal and physical abuse and often shocking degrees of threatening behaviour. Staff had been punched, pushed, kicked, threatened with weapons and held against their will just for simply doing their jobs.
Dave Rees, UNISON Blaenau Gwent branch chair said,
“Housing association staff are professionals dedicated to helping the local community and those in need. It can be a very difficult and challenging environment but violence and aggression should never be seen as ‘part of the job’.
By signing up to UNISON’s Violence at Work Charter Tai Calon has sent a strong message to employees and the wider community that they take this issue seriously. The charter sets a basic level of risk management and support for staff. We want all charities and housing associations to be proactive and sign our charter to help protect their staff.”
Joe Logan, Tai Calon Community Housing’s Chief Executive said,
“We have a committed and hard-working workforce that seeks to give the best possible service to residents. Our staff have the absolute right to be able to carry out their work without any fear of violence or aggression and so we are pleased to support UNISON’s charter to end violence at work.”
Notes for editors
- Link to UNISON’s End Violence at Work Charter
- To qualify for the UNISON Violence at Work charter mark, an employer must meet various standards including having a written violence and aggression at work policy available to all staff; reduce staff working in isolated buildings to an absolute minimum; ensure all violent incidents are reported and data on the incidents is monitored and thorough risk assessments are conducted for staff placed in vulnerable situations. The trade union says these are measures every employer should be able to deliver and it is only asking charities and housing associations to take their duty of care to staff seriously.
- UK-wide, only eighteen organisations in the community and voluntary sector have so far signed up to UNISON’s campaign to eradicate violence and aggression against employees
- Launched in March 2017, the campaign was created after a survey of members in the Community service group had revealed that 48% of workers in the group had experienced a violent or aggressive incident at work in the preceding two years. Respondents to the survey reported such incidents as:
o “Verbal abuse and threat of being hit with a chair when my back was turned”;
o “Service user punched me in the face”;
o “Client threatened to slit my throat”;
o “A knife was pulled on me by a service user”;
o “I was punched two times and kicked two times”;
o “I was hit by a service user when pregnant and have been scratched, punched and kicked by service users numerous times”
- UNISON will approach all major employers in the community and voluntary sector and ask them to sign up to the charter. All employers seeking to sign up will be asked for evidence of their compliance with the 10 points prior to signing.
- Organisations which need to make changes to their practices will be given one year to make those changes and state, at the time of signing, what their plan is to deliver on all 10 points.
Contact
Alastair Gittins, UNISON Press Officer on 07816 538397