VIOLENCE AT CITY WORKPLACES JUMPS 20-FOLD.

Byline: Dan Laidman Staff Writer

Reports of workplace violence and threats to Los Angeles municipal workers have soared 20-fold in the past five years, drawing increased concern even as the Southland reels in the wake of a Goleta postal shooting that left eight dead, the City Council was told Wednesday.

Officials say it is unclear if the steep rise - from four reports in 2001 to 93 last year - is due to more threats or just better reporting, but they said the city has created a dangerous situation by failing to emphasize the issue.

``If we don't address this, eventually something is going to fall through the cracks and we are going to have another Piper Tech, another Street Services,'' said Deputy City Attorney Vivienne Swanigan.

In the Piper Tech incident, a Los Angeles city electrician shot and killed several supervisors at C. Erwin Piper Technical Center in July 1995. Last year, a city maintenance worker fatally shot two co-workers at the Bureau of Street Services.

``I cannot stress enough how important this is,'' Swanigan said.

But city officials are wrestling over how to pay for increased training and vigilance.

While the City Attorney's Office has asked for $400,000 to create a full-time Workplace Violence Unit, the City Administrative Officer says staff should be reassigned to the task because the city is projecting a $270 million budget shortfall.

The council voted unanimously Wednesday to instruct the agencies to work together to find funding.

``Certainly there is great support and belief this is an important unit,'' said Councilman Bernard Parks, head of the budget committee and a former Los Angeles police chief.

The council also voted to open a bid process, using existing Personnel Department funds, to hire a contractor to provide workplace violence training, threat intervention and dispute resolution services.

The city saw four reports of workplace violence in 2001, climbing to 26 in 2002, 58 in 2003, 45 in 2004 and 93 in 2005, records show.

The reports resulted in 41 restraining orders last year, up from 32 in 2003 and 12 in 2004.

And officials believe there are more threats and violent incidents than are being reported, said Deputy City Attorney Hugo Rossitter.

``We don't know if that increased reporting is driven by more incidents but people are becoming more conscious of this issue,'' Rossitter said.

But increased awareness is not enough, said Swanigan, who heads a Citywide Threat Assessment Team that works to detect and minimize violence.

The city failed to meet a goal last year for training all employees on the matter, she said, leading to poor handling of some incidents.

In one case last May, a probationary employee at Los Angeles International Airport threatened to kill his supervisors if he was not hired - but three co-workers who witnessed the incident failed to report it, Swanigan said.

Eventually the worker lost his job and the threats were reported, she said, at which point police found rifles and guns stashed in his house.

Other incidents last year ranged from the Bureau of Street Services fatal shooting to numerous death threats, records show.

One incident included an employee allegedly threatening a co-worker with a four-inch knife, records show.

During testimony Wednesday, Councilman Dennis Zine referenced the Goleta shooting, allegedly perpetrated by a former postal worker.

Zine said he is worried that it is currently too easy for former city employees to re-enter sensitive facilities.

Dan Laidman, [phone]

dan.laidman(at)dailynews.com

WORKPLACE INCIDENTS

Selected city workplace violence reports from 2005:

--May 16: Library. An employee reported a supervisor stalked and shoved her.

--May 18: Zoo. An employee said a co-worker swore at colleagues, threw food at them and blocked someone's exit from a freezer.

--June 9: Community Development Department. A former employee allegedly entered the workplace, stole papers and said ``They are going to pay.''

--July 20: Recreation and Parks. Workers report an employee who was sent home for being drunk slashed a colleague's tires.

--Oct. 20: Recreation and Parks. Firebombing of an employee's car is suspected of being related to dissatisfied patrons at a city boxing facility.

--Nov. 21: Recreation and Parks. A youth sports parent allegedly threatened patrons and a city employee.

--Dec. 4: Mayor's Office. A suspended employee is alleged to have behaved erratically, including driving dangerously and trying to bypass City Hall security.

SOURCE: City Attorney's Office records

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WORKPLACE INCIDENTS (see text)