There was an act of violence near my workplace recently. The victim will survive but will not fully recover. We’re all a little shaken. I had been asking for a panic button for months before this because we deal with a lot of people having mental health struggles, domestic violence victims (who’s partners sometimes come looking for them), and people in the throes of addiction. I love the work I do, but it is easy to see how it could quickly become unsafe.
I asked my boss about it again and found out the request was declined because it would be $35 per month. That’s equivalent to about 75 minutes of my pay. But my organization can’t fit it in the budget. I got two employee awards today for going above and beyond (and I will keep doing it because I love our clients) but my safety is not worth $35.
I’m devastated.