Case Study - “Behavioral Problem”

Author :Channagiri

The Incident

A supervisor calls the Corporate Director of Safety/Security over the concern of an employee. The supervisor indicates that the employee had asked if their neighbors had called. When asked why, the employee had related a story about his neighbors who have a machine that can read his mind. The employee had told the supervisor that this matter needs to be reported because only the FBI is authorized to have such a machine.

Incident Response

The Assistant General Manager, Department Head, Corporate Director of Safety/Security, Corporate Counsel, and Director of Human Resources reviewed the facts regarding the situation and developed a course of action. The Incident Response Team concluded that the employee should be sent to his personal physician and should return with a letter from his physician stating that the employee “ . . . is not a threat to themselves or someone else . . . ”. Several months later, the employee returned to work with a letter from the doctor. The letter stated that it was the doctor’s opinion that returning to work would be good therapy for the employee. The company did not have an Employee Assistance Program (EAP), which made it difficult to handle.

Investigation

While interviewing the employee, it was found that the employee had thrown rocks at the neighbors’ house causing damage to the windows and roof. The employee explained that this was an attempt to stop them from using the mind reading machine. The employee seemed confused. He indicated that he was seeing a state chiropractor, who suggested that he move because of the neighbors, which he did.

Conclusion

The employee did return to work under close supervision and is doing well.

Lessons Learned

  • Employees should be treated with respect at all times.
  • When dealing with this type of situation, the individual can be unpredictable. It is important that trained staff handle such matters and consult with an expert in human behavior and risk assessment. 
  • It is also very important to consider not only violations of company policy but also violations of criminal laws. Not taking appropriate action to correct behavioral problems is actually giving permission to continue with the actions.
  • It is very important to identify who is on the Incident Response Team and to activate the Incident Response Team as soon as a potential threat is identified. 
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