Incidence of work-related aggression and violence in Canada

Reasons for the study

In 2004, almost one in five Canadian victims of violence reported that the violence took place at work, amounting to approximately 356,000 incidents of reported workplace violence. The importance of violence at work has led to the development of specific legislation and resources in most Canadian provinces. As part of a comprehensive approach to addressing workplace violence, we need to understand how often workplace violence occurs, which groups are at highest risk for workplace violence, and if this risk differs depending on the work context or time of day. This study examined the incidence and consequences of workplace violence using different population-level data sources and workers’ compensation data.

Objectives of the study

  • To describe the incidence of workplace violence in Canada, both overall and for particular demographic groups (e.g. men versus women) and workplace groups (e.g. industries)
  • To identify groups of workers who are at risk of workplace violence, to understand the relationships between these risk groups, and to examine if risk groups differ depending on data source or type of workplace violence (e.g. sexual violence versus non-sexual violence, or workplace violence from co-workers/supervisors compared to violence from clients)

Related scientific publications

Related interviews and articles

IWH Speaker Series presentations

Project status

Completed 2017

Research team

Collaborators and partners

Ontario’s Workplace Violence Prevention in Health Care Leadership Table

Funded by

Ontario Ministry of Labour