Workplace homicides in Chicago. Risk factors from 1965 to 1990

Using data from police records, this study examined risk factors related to 940 workplace homicides occurring in Chicago between 1965 and 1990. Black men were predominantly both victims (49%) and offenders (75%). The median age for victims was 42 years, but only 25 years for offenders. Women (40%) were more likely than men (6%) to be killed by intimates. Firearms were involved in 83% of all homicides, and robbery was the primary motive (62%). Workplace homicides occurred most frequently in taverns (22%). Alcohol use by tavern workers was involved in 48% of the homicides. Wide disparity in the number of workplace homicides occurred in Chicago's 77 community areas. Strategies to deter robbery and alcohol use, as well as to prevent domestic violence in the workplace, need to be implemented and evaluated. Occupational health nurses play a pivotal role in effective violence prevention.