RESPONDING TO A VIOLENT INCIDENT


BY NICOLET TE LANE


During morning recess duty an educator responds to an altercation among several students. When she arrives at the scene, one of the students, surprisingly, starts yelling and threatens her. Before she can react, the student shoves her very hard, knocking her to the ground.


What should the educator do? Consider the options below and check off the appropriate answer:


YES Get immediate assistance Verbally report the incident to the principal Submit a violent incident report Call the police Submit a Safe Schools Incident Reporting Form Call the parents of the students involved Submit an accident/injury/illness reporting form


n n n n n n n n n n n n n n


Not only is the educator dealing with the


emotional and physical consequences of the physical aggression and threat, she is now faced with reporting a violent incident. Should she give an oral report or send an email? Which forms should she use to report the incident? Is she getting mixed messages about reporting the incident? Does she still report if there are mitigating factors such as the age of the stu- dent or if the student has a safety plan? Reporting a violent incident is compli-


cated. This is, in part, the result of having two Ministries – the Ministry of Labour (MOL) and the Ministry of Education (EDU) – each with different reporting requirements, regulating violence in the workplace. For ex- ample, although the Ministry of Education uses a universal form (Safe Schools Incident Reporting Form) for reporting incidents,


26 ETFO VOICE | FALL 2017


NO IT DEPENDS n n n n n n n


including violent incidents, the Ministry of Labour does not require a standard form for school boards across the province. The defi- nition or criteria used for a violent incident is different between the two ministries (see MOL Occupational Health and Safety Act and EDU Policy/Program Memorandum 120). Where the Ministry of Labour defines a vio- lent incident as the actual, attempt or threat of physical force by a person against a worker, the Ministry of Education considers a violent incident one that requires medical attention. Part of the complexity in reporting vio-


lent incidents arises from the number of forms to be completed and by whom. Some- times one, sometimes both Ministries’ forms need to be completed, sometimes even more. The roles of the administrator and the work- er in completing the forms and timelines for


completion of the forms vary. In some school boards, the Violent Incident Report is part of the Accident/Injury/Illness/Incident Report- ing Form, while in others there are two sepa- rate forms to be completed. The MOL requires that all workplace


violent incidents (attempt, threat or actual) directed at a worker be reported, regardless of mitigating factors. The Ministry of Educa- tion requires serious student incidents to be reported, but the principal considers miti- gating factors when determining whether to suspend or expel a student. Quite apart from the reporting of a vio-


lent incident, there can be uncertainty and indecision regarding the sharing of infor- mation about and plans for persons with a history of violence. In many boards and schools, information in the plans intended to protect workers’ safety is only shared with people who work directly with the person/ student with a plan. In other boards and schools, the sharing of plans with workers is much broader and includes those who work directly with the person/student as well as staff who may encounter the person/ student during the school day. The Minis- try of Labour entrenches a worker’s “Right to Know” about a person with a history of violence “if they can be expected to encoun- ter the person and the risk of workplace violence is likely to expose them to physi- cal injury.” This would include educators on duty in the hallway and occasional teachers/ DECEs/ESPs/PSPs who can be expected to encounter the student. The Ministry of La- bour also provides teachers with a limited


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