SURVEILLANCE OF NONFATAL WORKPLACE ASSAULT INJURIES, USING POLICE ANDEMPLOYERS REPORTS

Although the majority of work-related homicides are routinely reported in the United States, information on non-fatal events is less complet e. Comprehensive surveillance of non-fatal events depends on understan ding reporting trends to different agencies. This study characterizes workplace assaults reported to police and through employers in eight s outhern California cities, Employers' reports filed from October 1, 19 94, through January 31, 1995, and police reports filed from June 1, 19 94, through March 31, 1995, that involved a non-fatal workplace assaul t injury were included. Reports from police and employers were linked, and annualized rates combining non-duplicative reports were calculate d and event characteristics compared. The combined annualized rate of workplace assault injury for the eight cities was 184.6 per 100,000 wo rkers, which was almost twice the rate found in either reporting sourc e individually. Police reports differed from employers' reports by ind ustry and occupation of victim but not type of event or weapons used, Examination of multiple reporting sources for non-fatal workplace assa ult injuries is essential to identifying the magnitude of these events . Understanding trends in reporting is important for the effective des ign of prevention programs.