No truer statement has ever been made that in property management no two days are ever exactly the same. This may be why most people who get into this field never leave it. We all like days where almost anything can happen and often does. But, if you think about it, how prepared are you and your team to handle some of those out of left field challenges? And I am not just talking about the screwball resident who comes in hopping mad because the neighbor did not clean up his pet’s waste or was charged a Late Fee.

Does your team know what to do in a bona fide emergency?

Occasionally something happens for which you cannot be fully prepared. Obviously there are some apartment communities located in high risk areas of cities that experience more than their fair share of crime and violence. Of course there are apartment communities located in high risk weather areas, such as hurricane prone areas and the so-called Tornado Alley. But you know, just because your property isn’t, does not mean you won’t have to deal with it.

In 2012, OSHA initiated some changes to their rules regarding workplace violence and in 2014, new changes to MSDA and safety measures will be required. Did your company update their Risk Management and Emergency Manuals? Are your teams prepared? Crisis management is a skill that takes a cool head and lots of preparation.

I can remember sitting in my office one day – it was an ordinary day – when all hell broke loose when one of the Maintenance Techs jumped another one. I watched in horror as one man began beating on the other and with blood streaking across his face the injured Tech made his way to our Office door where he was let in and the door locked until the police arrived. In the meantime, the Maintenance Supervisor had intervened and taken the culprit to the Shop. I accompanied the Officer to the Shop to talk to the Technician, who by that time was sitting on a stool with his head in his hands.

“Hey, how are you doing,” I asked. “Can you tell me what happened?”

He began rambling on about his head hurting and some other nonsensical mumbo jumbo about the enemy and he just had to defend himself. This struck a nerve of familiarity with me. “Okay, take it easy. Just breathe.” I looked at him and I softly asked him if he knew where he was. He shook his, “No. No. No! Where am I?” he asked. In a panic he reached his hand into his jacket.

During this time, the Police Officers were interviewing the injured man and the other Maintenance Techs and the Supervisor. I was alone with the guy. I stepped back and said I would be right back and that everything would be all right. I got him a cup of water to drink. (I wanted him to keep his hands out of his pocket.) I went to the Police Officer and told him I thought the guy had a weapon, probably a knife, in his jacket pocket. The Police found a knife on the guy during booking at the police station. It was determined that he was suffering from PTSD.

I have also been on site during tornadoes and hurricanes. The tornado occurred in Indiana and the hurricane was in Ohio. Who would have guessed this could be an issue in Ohio? I have handled ill Residents, dead Residents, loose pets that have been killed by cars, children abandoned in cars, toddlers who escaped apartments while parents were asleep, fires on site and threats to my life by a mentally ill stalker. The stalker incident was particularly unsettling, but this is why property management is cleverly disguised as ordinary days in the life of a property manager.

In all instances, the onsite team looks for direction and leadership to keep them on task and focused. I recommend practicing different scenarios so that all team members know what role is theirs to play during the drama at hand. Preparedness starts with a written policy approved by the Corporate Office but it takes on site Management to get the team ready for when disaster strikes. Most companies do a great job of this; however, in the event that there is an incident of workplace violence, how many of you know what to do and how to handle this type of emergency?

I also think we do a good job in creating policies that tackle safety measures, such as lifting policies, ladder safety, lock out, tag out procedures and wearing appropriate eye protection and personal protective gear. But I don’t think we educate our teams nearly enough on how to handle workplace violence. Considering that 18% of workplace fatalities occur because of workplace violence, and only 14% are caused by falls, we need to focus some energy on implementing effective strategies for this problem.

Just remember that many of our onsite teams live on site. This means they live where they work. Just remember, many of us are considered First Person Responders to our Residents. Just remember, we handle many different types of people in our communities, from our Residents to the general public. We may handle payments giving some people the impression that we have cash on hand. Not only should there be education and training on this topic, but if there is not, employers can be cited if they do not take precautionary steps to protect their employees from the potential harm of workplace violence as outlined by the OSHA Directive on Workplace Violence.

In the case of the Tech suffering from PTSD, he voluntarily resigned and enrolled in an inpatient program at a local hospital. The injured Tech returned to work after a short leave, covered by Workman’s Comp, and the Corporate Office determined the matter was handled appropriately. Apparently it was the first time the Management Company had ever had something like that happen. Goes to show you, the theory that every day is a different challenge was proven accurate after all.

* Thanks goes to Felix Nater, CSC of Nater Associates for talking to me about this issue.