Let's Talk About... Archive

Violence At Work

Sadly, violence in the form of shootings, bombings, assaults, and other acts happen daily in our country. As parents and caregivers, we need to address our children's questions, concerns, and fears about these issues. When we leave our home to go to work, what do our children think after hearing about various incidences of violence in offices across the country?

Some of the issues you may want to discuss with your kids about Violence at the Workplace are:

• You are safe at work because the company where you work has safety procedures in place. If there is security staff at the reception desk who check every visitor in, be sure to let your child know this.
• Tell children some of the things you do to make it safe for you while at work, such as, where you park your car, walking with someone to the parking lot, etc.

Here are some questions you may want to ask your kids:

• If an incident is in the news ask: Have you heard about the shooting?
• Do you want to talk about it?
• Encourage them to express their feelings. Allow them to talk about the event and listen very carefully. This will help you to find out their degree of distress.
• Do you think about Mommy or Daddy at work? What do you think about?