American Morning
When co-workers kill: Workplace violence on the rise
For Johna Lovely, who lives in Presque Isle, Maine, news coverage last month of Annie Le’s murder, allegedly by a co-worker at Yale University, brought back painful memories of the day she lost her daughter. “It brought everything back,” Lovely said. “I just cried and cried.”
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/10/07/sperrey.erin.art.jpg caption="Erin Sperrey was killed by a co-worker on January 2, 2005 in Caribou, Maine."]
Lovely’s youngest daughter, Erin Sperrey, was killed by a co-worker on January 2, 2005. Sperrey was a supervisor for a fast food restaurant in Caribou, Maine. She was working the overnight shift with one other employee – Christopher Shumway.
Shumway is now serving 45 years for beating Sperrey to death.
Nationwide, 517 people were murdered at work last year according to government statistics. And while that number is down 52 percent since 1994, an American College survey found things like bullying, harassment, and physical altercations are up.
Laurence Barton, who studies workplace violence at the American College, a nonprofit educational institution that trains financial services professionals, says that kind of violence is becoming epidemic.
“The call volume to human resource officers, to their EAP programs, to counselors is sky rocketing,” Barton says. “We are absolutely in a period right now of among the highest periods of threats at work in certainly recent memory.”
That doesn’t surprise Lovely and her daughter, Amanda. They’ve worked tirelessly since Erin Sperrey’s death to stop workplace violence. They’ve set up a fund in Erin’s name (erinsfund.org) and have traveled around Maine to convince companies to install panic buttons, connected to police departments, so employees in danger can get immediate help. They thought armed with Erin’s story it would be a cinch. They were wrong. They told us just eighteen companies out of hundreds agreed to install new security systems or educate their employees about workplace violence.
What’s on Tap – Wednesday October 7, 2009
Here are the big stories on the agenda today:
- Eight years in Afghanistan for U.S. troops and the general now in charge says we need 40,000 more to win this war. The president is making it clear withdrawal is not an option right now. But after a rare bi-partisan meeting with congressional leaders, something else is clear: the president is not ready to commit to a war strategy just yet.
- You're already paying more for peanuts, blankets and leg-room. Now the airlines are finding another way to make money. Several carriers are now hitting you with a 10 dollar peak-travel surcharge. The added fee goes into effect between Thanksgiving and New Years. You'll also have to pay more if you're traveling around the typical spring break season and Mmemorial Dday.
- If you live in New York City and have been through the drive thru in the past year, now you know why they call it a Whopper. The city was the first to start making chain restaurants post calorie counts on their menus. Others followed. It's forced some people to do a double take. But has it stopped them from “super sizing?” There’s a surprising new study that says some people are actually eating more!
- To catch a predator. Our Rob Marciano is on the hunt for 20-foot sharks off Virginia Beach with scientists who are trying to find out why they’re behaving differently… and what that could mean for their next meal.
About this Show
Welcome to the American Morning blog where you can get daily news updates from American Morning's reporters and producers. Join us for "the most news in the morning," weekdays from 6-9 a.m. ET, only on CNN.
On Twitter
