Workplace Violence, Mistreatment, and Well-Being at Work: A Forestry Sector Perspective

Abstract

This chapter critically explores workers’ experiences of workplace violence in the forestry sector in British Columbia, Canada. The chapter examines employees’ definition and experiences of workplace violence, and the drivers of workplace violence as perceived by managers, employees, and the union. Questionnaire survey, telephone interviews, and focus groups were used to focus on managers, employees, and the union representatives verbal accounts of their own experiences and perceptions of workplace violence. A mixed methodology is appropriate for addressing the research aims and provided insight into the lifeworld of participants as it relates to their experiences of workplace violence. The findings reveal that workplace violence is defined and perceived as physical, psychological, social/relational. The findings also reveal that definition, experiences and drivers of workplace violence are associated with threatening behavior, discrimination, bullying and harassment, work-life conflict, seniority and overtime, poor job design, workplace stress, mental health, substance abuse, blue color male-dominated environment, jealousy, and distrust. Implications of the findings for workplace violence, employee well-being, HRM, leadership and policy are discussed.