What workplace bullying is doing to companies and their employees

Thirty-seven percent of employees reporting in a recent survey have been subjected to workplace bullying including belittling, threats, demeaning remarks, and even physical attacks.  Workplace bullying has reached an all-time high, according the Workplace Bullying Institute in Bellingham, Washington.  With such high numbers, if a person has not yet been a victim of workplace bullying, he or she would know someone who has.  There is no excuse for workplace bullying.  Whatever else bullying may be, playful, it is not.  It harms employees and it harms both the reputation of companies as well as their bottom line.  There are actions business owners must take to stop it and to prevent it from ever happening again.

Easy to define; difficult to defend; impossible to excuse

Oddly, workplace bullying is a form of assault or abuse but it is not illegal–yet.  Workplace bullying occurs when either an individual, or group, direct unreasonable actions against another employee to intimidate, humiliate, degrade, or otherwise offend that person.  It usually starts with a misuse of power and someone thinking they are doing something funny.  It differs from aggression in that aggression may involve only a single act.  Bullying just goes on and on until someone stops it.

Signs of workplace bullying

The signs of bullying, in general, show managers, or others:
blaming without any justification,

• treating one person differently than the others,
• causing social isolation,
• humiliation,
• swearing at,
• shouting at,
• targeting for practical jokes, or
• excessive over-the-shoulder monitoring or micro-managing.

Bullying causes severe emotional reactions which cause loss-of-work time and diminished productivity.  That alone is expensive to a company.  Devastating as it is to all those involved, studies indicate that although 37% of employees report it happening to them, 62% of employers simply ignore the problem.

When bullying continues, management is to blame

Sadly, the tone is often set by management.  A manger that has been called out for bullying has had his one chance.  It is so serious that if it were to occur again, the company should replace the manager.  No senior manager should ever allow a manager, who has had bullying pointed out to him or her, a second chance.  Bullying demonstrates a person does not have what it takes to be an effective manager.  Bullying may also be a precursor to more violent behavior.

Employees have actions they can and need to take

There are a few things an employee can do.  One, an employee should keep a record or diary of the instances.  Often this is difficult for an employee who already feels depressed, anxious, and suffers fro a lowering of self-esteem, but it is necessary to build a position management can support.  Employees begin to regain control over the situation as soon they can:

• Recognize they are not the problem and that they are being bullied.
• Realize that bullying is about control issues and have nothing to do with their performance which may, in fact, be excellent.
• Retain anything written that indicates bullying, especially records and reports that contradict accusations.
• Expect a bully to deny everything and accuse you of misunderstanding.
• Find an ally-witness who can be with you enough to observe the actions.

Employers have a trust responsibility

Once it is brought to the attention of management, what can an employer do?

• Whenever an incident is reported, management has the duty to respond immediately.
• Reassigning individuals involved may be necessary.
• Ensure all management is fully engaged in their staff and have a hands-on attitude about oversight of middle management.
• If bullying behavior has crept its way into the corporate culture commence awareness meetings and discuss what bullying is and the seriousness of its implications and encourage prompt reporting of instances.
• Train management in effective conflict resolution.
• Encourage an open door meeting including regular skip-level meetings where employees can give grassroots views directly to senior managers.
• Provide an independent contact, out if the line of authority, for employees.

Usually the last item will be an HR contact or even an outside HR resource trained in workplace bullying and conflict resolution.  This shows a commitment from top management what will and will not be tolerated.

Stopping the bullies is a team effort

Both employees and employers have a part in solving the issue of workplace bullying.  Employers have the obligation to protect those who they have employed from workplace bullying.  In today’s economy, the workplace can be a highly stressful environment.  Management has to become more in tune with what creates a hostile work environment for anyone and everyone.  The statistics show that our record to date is unacceptable when it comes to workplace bullying.  This is a behavior that cannot be condoned or protected in any way.  Everyone pays.