Office âPencil Pusherâ Fired After Stabbing Co-Worker With Pencil
Â Rocco Faber, a 30-year employee of Drake Business Systems, redefined the conventional image of the mild-mannered office drone, after injuring co-worker Flip McKenzie during a spontaneous attack last week.âHe created tension for me at my expense,â said Faber.Â  âSo I stabbed him in the neck.â Faber, speaking from a suburban Dayton anger management facility continued, âI could hear him on the other side of my cube, drumming his fingers on the table, and he chewed with his mouth open, and he made too many personal calls and I could hear them.Â  So I stabbed him in the neck.âIncreasingly common occurrences of workplace violence have dominated headlines, reflecting one of the bleaker elements of Americaâs present-day employment landscape.Â  The usual scenario includes an employeeâs termination, issues of underlying anger, and the use of a weapon â usually and most violently, a firearm.âIâm against guns and wonât have any in my house or anywhere near me,â said Faber, âbut I got so angry that day and I did use my pencil as a weapon.Â  It was a bad mistake and I wish I could erase it, but I canât.Â  Itâs a permanent blot on my record.âOffice manager Helen Brown was stunned upon hearing of the unexpected behavior from one of the companyâs most consistent employees.Â  âHeâs been here longer than I have,â commented Brown.Â  âI remember him when I first started.Â  I sat across from him and he was quiet.Â  I moved up the ladder pretty quickly, and I didnât get to know him too well.Â  Some of the old-timers over in HR were pretty upset.âIn exchange for prison time, a deal was negotiated between prosecutors and Faberâs victim.Â  âAt the end of the day I wasnât really hurt that bad.â said McKenzie.Â  âIt was more of a scuffle, so I didnât press charges, you know? Â I mean the pencil was pretty dull and it just left a little mark right here on the side of my neck.Â  He really didnât have a strong grip.âFaber will participate in group therapy sessions, where proper coping mechanisms are stressed.Â  Anger management techniques are demonstrated by role-playing, with constructive criticism making up a large partÂ of treatment.âThey were going to offer me some job training,â Faber said, âbut I kept telling them I already have a career, so I asked them if I could continue doing it. Â They gave me a job here as the accountant for the group home, and so far, so good.Â  I manage all the expenses and budgets, so it keeps me busy and not thinking about stabbing anyone in the neck.Â  Iâm just lucky.Â  One of the guys here makes a lot of jokes, and he said that they gave me another stab at it.Â  That was a pretty good one and everybody in the room laughed.Â  Heâs a pretty good guy,â said Faber, âbut sometimes he tells too many jokes when weâre trying get work done. Â We all have a good time though.Â  My favorite part is when we get to do the role playing, when we get to act out.â