Business Building Corner

October is National Bullying Prevention Month and the fact that the Workplace Bullying Institute (WBI) even exists is a sad commentary on today’s employment environment. Workplace bullying is defined by the WBI as "repeated, health-harming mistreatment of one or more persons (the targets) by one or more perpetrators. It is abusive conduct that is threatening, humiliating, or intimidating." It can take the form of "work interference or sabotage, which prevents work from getting done." It can also simply be "verbal abuse."

Workplace bullying is similar to the negative behavior that takes place in schools, as early as kindergarten, all through high school and even beyond. Bullying is due to the bully’s need to control their "victims" and involves behavior that is threatening or withholding in some way. In school, this can be the act of pushing a kid around or not allowing a targeted child to join in a group activity. The bully feels a sense of power. In the workplace, it could be a manager threatening an employee with a poor review if a “favor” is not performed or withholding permission, such as not allowing an individual time off for a medical appointment.

Why does any form of bullying take place? Many people assume that the victims of bullying are either physically small or shy in their personalities; in other words, victims come across as "sitting ducks." In reality, studies on bullying carried out by the WBI show that bullies are generally people who feel insecure about their positions, whether in a social situation or in the work hierarchy. Conversely, the targets of bullying are actually high performers or individuals who are talented in what they do, thereby inciting the bullying personality to take negative action as a way of compensating for their own insecurities.

Bullying in the workplace is equated by the WBI to domestic violence. The workplace experience resembles that of a battered spouse in that the abuser inflicts pain with intent. The victim never knows when the violence will occur but hopes for safety, especially when there are periods of peace. This is identical to the workplace victim who is yelled at, threatened or denied when the bully wields power or decides to withhold commonplace privileges.

Why is bullying so pervasive in the workplace? Like virtually everything in life, negative actions that do not have consequences will continue on. With regard to bullying, if the company does not take action, the bad behavior will continue. Not punishing the perpetrator tacitly condones the bad behavior. More often than not, the company does not take action because Human Resources or Conflict Resolution does not recognize that actual bullying is taking place, not because they do not want to help. And, the bullying personality preys on human nature: no one wants to be a rat or intervene because it’s “not my business.” It’s akin to watching a mugging take place on the street and ignoring it.

Here are some examples of workplace experiences related to bullying:

• You are given a new job or task but are not given training. Your work is then rated "not good enough" by the boss.
• Co-workers are instructed to stop working with, talking to, or socializing with you.
• You are criticized arbitrarily in meetings in front of others.
• You are never left alone to do your job without interference. That is, you constantly have someone watching over your shoulder, causing performance anxiety.
• You are verbally abused but if you talk back, you are the one who suffers from disciplinary action because the bully is your supervisor and labels you "insubordinate."
• When you confront your tormentor, you are accused of harassment.
• Despite stellar performance on the job, you are accused of and blamed for mistakes you did not make personally. You constantly take the "hit" for the team.
• Co-workers, managers and others who know the bully in question, do nothing to help you out of your situation. (This is often due to the “spectator’s” own fear of negative repercussions.)
• You are called into meeting after meeting by the bully (often times your direct supervisor) and asked to do the same task over and over again, without explanation.

Unfortunately, there is no law against workplace bullying in the United States. Some of the “economic harm” that is the direct result of workplace bullying is listed below. The percentages refer to number of situations that result in that particular "harm."

• Lost opportunity to do a job you once loved
• Forced transfer from a loved job, often to a position not preferred (13%)
• Constructive discharge without reasonable cause (24%)
• Target quits to reverse the decline in health and sanity (40%)

In U.S. Workplace Bullying Surveys conducted in 2010 and 2007, the consistent finding was that the majority of bullied individuals end up losing their jobs by quitting or being terminated. However, as awareness builds, more than 20 states have introduced some version of WBI’s anti-bullying legislation called "The Healthy Workplace Bill."