Workplace violence in the UK hospitality industry: impacts and recommendations

Workplace violence is becoming a popularly used term to describe acts of ‘violence' that occur in the working environment. The present study aimed to examine the phenomenon in the most labour intensive of the service industries — the hospitality sector. It found that 45% of employees have suffered at the hands of ‘aggressors', a situation which is compounded by the working culture of an industry that demands long hours with high social contact to a unique set of variables, which contrive to create potentially dangerous working environments for staff. Employers must recognise the phenomenon and the potential economic and social penalties for negligence.