Life Rage

April 8th, 2011 by Simon Zhen

From MyBackTracker.com

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released the bank crime statistics for 2010 that showed most bank robberies occurred on a Friday. California and Texas were the states with the highest number of reported bank burglaries.

In 2010, there were 5,546 robberies, 74 burglaries, eight larcenies and 13 extortions of financial institutions (commercial banks, mutual savings banks, savings and loan associations, and credit unions) reported to law enforcement, according to the FBI 2010 Bank Crime Statistics report.

Read: Bank Robberies Rise Causing Banks Millions

The FBI said that the total 5,628 reported violations in 2010 represented a decrease from 2009, during which 6,065 total incidents were reported.

The data revealed that Friday was the favorite day to rob a bank, during which 1106 (19.7%) of the 5,628 incidents occurred. Also, 1554 (27.6%) violations occurred during the mid-morning hours from 9 A.M. to 11 A.M., regardless of the day of the week.

In 5,102 (91%) of incidents, the total amount of loot taken was valued at over $43 million but more than $8 million in loot was recovered. That means banks have lost over $35 million due to bank robberies in 2010.

Most violations occurred in the Southern U.S. with 1,833 reported incidents followed by the Western U.S. with 1,710 incidents reported. The four states with the most reported bank robberies were California (805), Texas (464), Pennsylvania (292), and Ohio (263). Banks in metropolitan areas were hit more often, suffering 2623 (46.6%) of incidents.

The modes of operation of the bank crimes largely included demand notes, oral demands, and threats of a weapon. Counters were the areas within banks involving bank crime in nearly 90% of time.

To see the rest of the FBI 2010 Bank Crime Statistics Report, click here.

Too many victims of stalking don’t take immediate action to stop the stalking or they delay in seeking help. If you find yourself being stalked in any way, it is very important to take action as soon as possible to end the stalking. Often victims have feelings that somehow they caused the stalking, encouraged the stalking behavior or that they are overreacting to a situation. I have spoken to many stalking victims who have been made to feel that they are to blame for the situation. This is not true! My professional experience has shown that victims of stalkers are not the cause of the stalking nor should they be blamed for the stalking.

There are several things a victim of stalking can and should do if they feel they are being stalked in any way:

• Inform others and do not suffer in silence. Stalkers rely on their victims keeping silent. Stalking is a crime and should be reported to police immediately. It is also important to tell the police you are willing to prosecute.
• Make sure your personal information is protected. Remove your personal information from public domain. The use of P.O. Boxes and unlisted phone numbers are good examples of smart protection.
• Send a clear message to the stalker that contact is unwanted and that there should be no further contact or any form of negotiation with the stalker.
  Do not return any of the stalker’s gifts, letters, answering phone calls, responding to e-mails, etc.! The stalker views these actions as maintaining a relationship with the victim. Keep all items sent to you as evidence for future prosecution.
• Keep comprehensive documentation and log every incident related to the stalker and store all evidence in a locked location.
• Seek counseling and professional help. Stalking victims often experience a range of emotional reactions that could affect their personal and professional lives. Professional counseling can greatly enhance the victim’s ability to cope with the situation.
• The lesson here is to take action immediately! The earlier action is taken, the easier it is for the victim to get back to a normal life and to eliminate the stalking before it escalates!

The legalization of marijuana for medical uses has been ratified in several states and many other states are considering it, creating a myriad of questions, legal issues, employee policy questions and more. What exactly does this mean for employers, employees and workplace issues and policies? And how much does the state law vs. federal laws affect the issue? These are the legal and safety issues that are currently being debated across the country.

On the federal level, the government has classified marijuana as a Schedule I drug that puts it on par with LSD or heroin. Compounding the issue, employers can fire or refuse to hire employees for using medical marijuana without running afoul of the Americans with Disabilities Act or any other federal anti-discrimination statue.

Compounding the issues is that the states that allow medical marijuana have differing laws surrounding this hotly debated issue. Some states including Oregon, California, Montana and Washington allow employers to fire medical marijuana patients for using the drug. Other states including Rhode Island and Maine do not allow employers to fire medical marijuana patients. Most state medical marijuana laws protect patients from criminal prosecution, but provide no protection on the job. If a state decriminalizes the use of marijuana for medical purposes, and an employer has a zero tolerance policy that provides for discharge for using marijuana, even off-work or for medical purposes, should the employee be terminated or should the employer change their policy? It is obvious that the legalization of medical marijuana is causing all sorts of new employment law debates, the repercussions of which have yet to be fully determined or challenged in court. And there are distinct differences in laws on the federal and state levels causing even more confusion.

I see it a solution lying somewhere in the middle and I would like to offer these simple suggestions to employers who are confused over the discrepancies:
•    Re-evaluate your current polices: Your company policy should be clear about your stance reference medical marijuana use and how it will or will not affect hiring, firing and promotion decisions.
•    Educate and Explain: Provide on-going training and education about your organization’s drug policy. Additionally, all job applicants should be made aware of your company policy on medical marijuana.
•    Monitor legislative and legal developments closely: Laws and court rulings change all the time and it is important to know how those changes can affect your company, your policies and your employees.

•    Non-safety related exceptions: If the position is safety-related the policy can be very strict, but if the position is not safety-related the policy could be more lenient allowing the use of medical marijuana. In any case, proven medical documentation should be required.
•    Use of Marinol: There is a type of medical marijuana in pill form called “Marinol” which is a Schedule III medicine. Marinol is verifiable, legal and prescribed. Anyone on medical marijuana can be prescribed Marinol which has a verifiable medical explanation for any positive test.

The confusion and battle regarding medical marijuana will continue in workplace and most probably into the court systems of the states and possibly even the Supreme Court. In the end the important thing is to maintain safety for the employees and I predict this will dominate the final formulation of federal regulations, laws and workplace policies.

Liferage is a phrase coined by Mr. Tim Dimoff of SACS Consulting and Investigative Services.   It’s meant to describe, in broad terms, the anger and frustration that every American feels towards a world they really believe is spinning out of their control. Unfortunately, it’s also the way many of us feel everyday.

We have all heard stories about employees killed while at work.  However, you may not know the scope of the problem.  The last three years averaged close to 600 workplace fatalities PER YEAR as a result of violence.  This includes worker-on -worker violence, harassment and bullying.  Approximately 18% of all reported violent crimes happen in the workplace.

Don’t let a “Liferage” moment allow enraged employees to turn your good company culture into a bad hostile working environment.   The ones who suffer most when this happens are your “good employees”.  They will often find it difficult to be productive under those circumstances.

SACS Consulting provides polices and training to identify and remove possible threats to a company’s stability.  Whether the problem already exists or you just want to be a pro-active force at your company, call us now for trainings, investigations or to order copies of Tim Dimoff’s book, LIFERAGE.

Do what you can NOW to curb the problem LATER!

SACS Consulting and Investigative Services, Inc.
1-888-722-7937
www.sacsconsulting.com
info@sacsconsulting.com

Official Blogsite
www.liferage.com

Tim Dimoff, President, Speaker, Author, Expert web site:
www.TimothyDimoff.com

“Perhaps one of the most tragic aspects of workplace violence is its dramatic rise. While the overall rates for workplace violence have dropped significantly in the past ten years, homicides from customers and clients have steadily grown from 25 in 1997 to 74 workplace murders in 2007. Figures provided by the Office of Safety and Health Statistics at the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, show unexpected trends of workplace violence based on the type of perpetrator.”*

SACS training, education and policies, solving the  problem before it starts.

SACS Consulting and Investigative Services, Inc.
1-888-722-7937
www.sacsconsulting.com
info@sacsconsulting.com

Official Blogsite
www.liferage.com

Tim Dimoff, President, Speaker, Author
www.TimothyDimoff.com

*Posted by Ross Arrowsmith on Wednesday, February 18th 2009 under Workplace Violence