Staff facing ‘appalling’ level of violence

Staff working for public bodies were subjected to more than 27,000 incidents of violence in a single year, according to a trade union.

The Unison figures, which cover July 2010 to July this year, come from freedom of information requests to public bodies in Scotland, such as colleges, universities, the NHS, councils and police, although they do not include the civil service.

The survey, which revealed a total of 27,775 violent incidents, showed a “significant rise” in violence against council staff, up 780 to 12,168, compared with the previous 12 months. Fewer such incidents were recorded in the NHS, down 1,281 to 13,552.

Unison noted some improvement in the monitoring and recording of violent incidents by 18 councils in Scotland, but pointed out that 14 councils had failed to review their policies in line with new guidance on managing occupational violence, a year after it was introduced.

Between July 2009 and July 2010 public bodies recorded 27,963 violent incidents, the union said.

Unison’s Scottish organiser, Dave Watson, said: “These figures highlight an appalling level of violent incidents perpetrated on staff who are simply doing their job.”