Don't cross the line

Aggression and violence against workers causes harm.

Aggression and violence cross the line

Work-related violence involves incidents in which a person is abused, threatened or assaulted in circumstances relating to their work.

Most of us understand that extreme acts of violence are unacceptable. But not everyone realises there is a scale of aggression and violence. Some examples include:

  • aggressive gestures or expressions such as eye rolling and sneering
  • verbal abuse such as yelling, swearing and name calling
  • intimidating physical behaviour such as standing in a worker's personal space or standing over them
  • physical assault such as biting, spitting, scratching, pushing, shoving, tripping and grabbing
  • extreme acts of violence and aggression such as hitting, punching, strangulation, kicking, personal threats, threats with weapons, sexual harassment and assault

No matter the situation, none of these are acceptable. Being exposed to these incidents repetitively can have a cumulative and significant ongoing effect on wellbeing.

Aggression and violence resources

Don't cross the line

WorkSafe Advisory

WorkSafe's advisory service is available between 7:30am and 6:30pm Monday to Friday. If you need more support, you can also contact WorkSafe using the Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS National) or the National Relay Service.

1800 136 089 More contact options