{"id":2285,"date":"2019-03-22T18:31:50","date_gmt":"2019-03-22T18:31:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/2285\/weapons-at-work-must-know-hr-policies-for-concealed-and-carry-weapons"},"modified":"2020-03-26T19:34:27","modified_gmt":"2020-03-26T19:34:27","slug":"weapons-at-work-must-know-hr-policies-for-concealed-and-carry-weapons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/2285\/weapons-at-work-must-know-hr-policies-for-concealed-and-carry-weapons\/","title":{"rendered":"Weapons at Work: Must-Know HR Policies for Concealed and Carry Weapons"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Do you have a widespread company policy involving firearms? Should you? Recent incidents like the shooting at YouTube&#8217;s headquarters suggest businesses should consider it.<\/p>\n<p>Below we&#8217;ll get into a brief overview of why companies enforce weapons policies. We&#8217;ll also discuss potential legal concerns and show a sample policy for you to consider.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Keep in mind that laws surrounding concealed carry weapons vary from state to state. Continue on to get the latest information on HR firearm policies.<\/p>\n<h2>Why You Should Consider Workplace Gun Policies<\/h2>\n<p>In 2016, over <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bls.gov\/opub\/ted\/2018\/there-were-500-workplace-homicides-in-the-united-states-in-2016.htm\">500 workplace homicides<\/a> occurred. Shootings accounted for over 79% of those homicides.<\/p>\n<p>Gun control is a controversial topic, but employers also have a duty to keep their employees safe. It&#8217;s federally mandated that employers:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Identify potential vulnerabilities like shootouts<\/li>\n<li>Provide a safe workplace<\/li>\n<li>Take steps to prevent workplace violence<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>That means you need to develop a policy on violence, which includes the topic of concealed guns. You may also need to tackle the issue of devices that are potential weapons such as a knife, air pistol, or taser.<\/p>\n<h2>Are Gun Restrictions Legal in the Workplace?<\/h2>\n<p>When trying to determine the best course of action, you&#8217;ll need to examine your area&#8217;s laws. Some states allow gun controls in the workplace. Others consider such policies an infringement on gun owner&#8217;s rights.<\/p>\n<p>You&#8217;ll have to ensure your concealed carry policy isn&#8217;t discriminatory. Here are some issues that could get interpreted as discriminatory in some areas:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Asking an employee if they&#8217;re carrying a gun in their vehicle<\/li>\n<li>Searching an employee&#8217;s vehicle for a weapon<\/li>\n<li>Hiring or terminating employment based on a weapon concealed permit<\/li>\n<li>Hiring or terminating employment based on owning guns<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>When your business has locations in many states, it may be more difficult to make a broad policy. It may be best to make different policies for each location.<\/p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re unsure about any of these issues, then it may be best to speak with a lawyer.<\/p>\n<h2>What Should a Concealed Carry Weapons Policy Look Like?<\/h2>\n<p>Most businesses already have a workplace policy in place about violence. Some businesses choose to include their firearms policy with their violence policies. Others separate the two issues.<\/p>\n<p>Here are some questions to consider when devising your concealed weapons policy sample:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>What&#8217;s the definition of concealed weapons?<\/li>\n<li>Define prohibited behaviors and items<\/li>\n<li>What disciplinary actions will follow an offense?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If your weapons work policy allows firearms, then safety tips should be part of your policy. Provide <a href=\"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/1100\/7-tips-for-safe-gun-storage-to-protect-yourself-and-your-family\/\">instructions for safe gun storage<\/a> and other information to employees.<\/p>\n<p>Always run your policy by your legal team or lawyer before implementing it.<\/p>\n<h2>Weapons at Work: What&#8217;s Your Policy?<\/h2>\n<p>It&#8217;s becoming vital for modern-day workplaces to make policies about concealed carry weapons. Should employees carry them? What about customers?<\/p>\n<p>Facing these questions is a daunting but necessary task. Don&#8217;t hesitate to consult with your legal team while creating these new rules.<\/p>\n<p>Looking for more tips and information about gun safety? Check out our <a href=\"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/category\/special-interest\/firearms-and-gun-safety\/\">firearms and gun safety blog<\/a> section for our latest posts on the topic.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Do you have a widespread company policy involving firearms? Should you? Recent incidents like the shooting at YouTube&#8217;s headquarters suggest businesses should consider it. Below we&#8217;ll get into a brief&hellip; <span class=\"read-more-span\"><a href=\"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/2285\/weapons-at-work-must-know-hr-policies-for-concealed-and-carry-weapons\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Weapons at Work: Must-Know HR Policies for Concealed and Carry Weapons&#8221;<\/span> <span class=\"genericon genericon-next\"><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2286,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5,57],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2285"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2285"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2285\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21070,"href":"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2285\/revisions\/21070"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2286"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2285"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2285"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upgifs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2285"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}