Workplace violence has been a problem in California and across the nation for decades, and it appears to be getting worse. Some governmental estimates have identified up to 36 mass killings in California workplaces in the last decade, including five since the start of 2021. According to a Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) study, more than two million people a year report being victimized by workplace violence, and the unreported number is probably six million more.
When you read the reports on Samuel Cassidy’s behavior, you might ask yourself why nobody spotted and stopped him before he recently killed eight coworkers at San Jose’s Valley Transit Authority (VTA) maintenance yard:
