Where these happen
Violence by a coworker or a supervisor. Violence by a customer, patient, client, or member of the public, which is the larger share of what we hear about. Someone from a person's private life who came to the workplace, often after warnings that went nowhere. And incidents at sites where several companies operate side by side, where it is not immediately clear who was responsible for security or for the person who caused the harm. Healthcare, retail and late night service, transit, social services, security work, and construction come up most often. Employers sometimes treat an incident purely as a personnel matter when it is also an injury matter, and those are handled very differently.
Claims that can sit side by side
A criminal case is brought by prosecutors and is separate from anything you pursue yourself, though it can affect timing. A workplace injury claim through workers' compensation is usually the route for medical treatment and lost earnings from an injury on the job, and in most places it limits what can be brought directly against the employer, with exceptions that differ by state. A claim against the person who committed the assault exists on its own. So may a claim against a third party such as a contractor, a staffing agency, or a property owner whose responsibility it was. Where those lines fall varies by state and by the facts.
What to document
Get medical attention and make sure the record reflects how the injury happened, not only what hurts, because that description is read closely later. File the incident report and keep your own copy of what you submitted. Photograph injuries and the location with dates, and write down the names of witnesses while people are still working there. Note whether the employer knew about prior incidents, complaints, or threats involving the same person and what was done about them. Ask for security footage in writing and quickly, since systems overwrite on their own cycle. Notice requirements on the workers' compensation side run separately from any court filing window, and missing one does not excuse the other.
