This is the third time in two months that your company, Metro Power, has had to escort an employee from the building after a violent episode. Frankly, everyone is a little frightened by this development. As a human resource administrator, you have the unhappy task of trying to quell the storm.

Metro Power rarely fires employees, preferring to transfer them to new responsibilities, which may either draw out their finer points (and prove better for everyone in the long run) or help them to decide to seek greener pastures. But in three cases, you had no choice. In one incident, a man punched out his computer screen after the system failed. In another, a man threw his keyboard across the room when he couldnt get access to the computers intranet. And in a third incident, a woman kicked a printer while screaming obscenities.

In all three cases, co-workers were terrified by these sudden outbursts. Too many disgruntled workers have committed too many violent acts against others in recent years; and whenever workers lose their tempers on the job these days, it causes great fearnot to mention financial losses from the destruction of property and the disruption of workflow.

People are on edge at Metro Power right now. Rising energy costs, public and government scrutiny, and cries of price gouging are causing additional work and stress for all your employees. Plus, too much overtime, unrealistic expectations for overworked departments, and high demands on sensitive equipment are contributing to the problem. Tempers are frayed, and nerves strained. Youre concerned that these three incidents are just the tip of the iceberg.

Your department head suggests you write a reminder to all employees about controlling tempers in the workplace. Tell them that technology glitches are commonplace and not some unholy disaster. And remind them to report routine computer failures to Bart Stone. Hell get to them in due course.

You say nothing to contradict her idea, but you wonder how to do what she asks without sounding trite or condescending. You dont want to sound like some nagging parent; if you do, no one will pay attention to your message. You sigh deeply as your boss strolls calmly back to her office. Youre fairly certain that every employee already knows about reporting computer failures to Bart Stone, assistant director of information services.

Even so, you can think of a few suggestions that might be helpful, such as taking a walk to cool down and recognizing that machines, like humans, are not infallible. You want cooler heads to prevail, but thats just the sort of clich youd like to avoid in your message.

Your task: Write the memo to all employees. Instead of uttering platitudes or wagging your finger, include preventive maintenance tips for office equipment, such as turning off systems at night, keeping foods and liquids away from keyboards, making use of dusting sprays and special cloths, and so on. Your boss also asked you to make it clear that abusive behavior will be reprimandedincluding the possibility of terminationso include that point but in a tactful way.