Just went through one of those “Corporate Safety” thingies. Basic stuff, like where to go if there’s a fire, what to do if there’s a tornado, how to use an AED, and what to do if there’s a guy gunning down your coworkers.
They actually gave effective advice. I was shocked. In order of priority, you should:
- RUN AWAY
- Help others RUN AWAY
- If you can’t RUN AWAY, then hide. Preferably behind something bulletproof.
- If you can’t RUN AWAY, and you can’t hide, call 911 and let them know where the shooter is.
Pretty standard, right? But then they said something I didn’t expect to hear:
- If your life is in imminent danger, ATTACK THE SHOOTER USING WHATEVER MEANS YOU HAVE AVAILABLE.
Granted, we are disarmed by policy here, so “whatever means you have available” is probably strangling the guy with a mouse cord while my coworkers bludgeon him with their laptops and desk phones….
But recognizing that righteous violence can be an answer is a good start.
I’m actually hearing/seeing more of this in more and more places. Seems that someone might have figured out that “training them in victimization” is actually pretty damn stupid – and probably a liability.
Shame I’m so cynical I’m assuming they’re changing training to try reducing liability.
Absolutely unexpected.
However, I work where “training them in victimization” is still the norm.
“Strangling them with a mouse cord?” What world do you live in? Every corporate lawyer and HR puke knows that wireless mice and keyboards are de rigueur, mostly to reduce liability for workplace injuries. Such irony . . .