'It’s a shame we have to live this way.' Active-shooter training in the workplace now frequently includes demonstrations on knocking out windows, building barriers and distracting a gunman
By Chip Cutter, Kelsey Gee and Ruth Simon Updated Aug. 8, 2019 10:59 am ET Like many U.S. workers lately, Maricarmen Molina has mentally mapped out how she hopes to escape should a gunman ever enter her workplace.
The contingency plans aren’t so much fail-safe strategies as a reflection of the collective anxiety and futility they feel, some say. The measures can only go so far, security experts say. In settings that allow public access, such as retail outlets, there is often little employers can do to screen customers at the door since companies want to allow consumers to come and go easily. Some workers say that has motivated them to think of unconventional techniques to cope in a potential attack.
“A stainless steel door is not going to stop that bullet, and there’s almost no cover that you can hide behind indoors that will,” said Mr. Davis, who runs a security consulting firm for corporate clients. Some bosses have deployed more basic approaches. River Run, a tech services firm near Milwaukee, resorted to stashing cans of the insecticide Raid on the desks of its roughly 25 staffers in the office. CEO Paul T. Riedl Jr. said he believes the bug spray poses a lower risk than arming employees with a gun that could accidentally hurt someone.
Share Your Thoughts Does your employer offer an active-shooter training? If so, do you trust it to be effective? Have you thought about your own plan? Join the conversation below.
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