Bullying in the Workplace

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Bullying in the Workplace
Marvin Meickel March 2008
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1999 International Labour Organization (ILO)

• Definition of Workplace Violence
• any incident in which a person is abused,
  threatened or assaulted in circumstances relating
  to their work. These behaviors would originate
  from customers, co-workers at any level of the
  organization. This definition would include all
  forms of harassment, bullying, intimidation,
  physical threats/assaults, robbery and other
  intrusive behaviors.

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Bernice Fields, Arbitrator

• Violence in the workplace begins long before
  fists fly or lethal weapons extinguish lives.
  Where resentment and aggression routinely
  displace cooperation and communication, violence
  has occurred.

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Conditions in the Workplace

• 40 of clients seen for psychological services
  report workplace stress
• Violent incidents usually begin with
  psychological harassment (e.g. bullying,
  exclusion, gossiping, unfair workloads) OC
  Transport, Ottawa (1999)
• 20 of violent incidents (assaults and robbery)
  occur in the workplace

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What is Stress?

• Complex interplay between individual and
  environment
• Event
• Interpretation of event
• Coping characteristics
• Threat of stressor
• Coping response

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What is Bullying?

• Bullying is repeated, unreasonable behavior
  directed towards an employee or group of
  employees that creates a risk to health safety
• It undermines legitimate business interest
• Prevents getting work done
• Driven by the need to control others
• Offensive, intimidating, malicious or insulting
• Is a symptom of harassment (general type)
• Is an abuse or misuse of power

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Silence why suffer?

• Targets suffer approximately 2 years before
  taking action while
• Some shamed individuals remain silent
•     50 women on women
• 30 men on women
• 12 men on men
• 8 women on men

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Workplace Danger Signs

• Emotional outbursts
• Unacceptable behaviour
• Poor work performance
• Unusual behavior for the individual

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Fears that sustain Bullying

• Inadequate or non responses from employer
• Co-workers/witnesses afraid
• Tendency to blame the victim
• Aversion to conflict
• Mediation doesnt work
• Bullies are irrational
• Labeled as weak or whining
• Accepts bullying as a normal part of the job

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The Perpetrators

• 80 of bullies are typically bosses
• The range of cruel mistreatment
• Control via actions taken against target
• Control by withholding resources

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Types of Bullies

• The Screaming Mimi
• The Constant Critic
• The Two-Headed Snake
• The Gatekeeper

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The Screaming Mimi

• Public arena to humiliate
• Intimidates to instill fear
• Yelling, cursing, or screaming to mask
  incompetence
• Makes physical threats and invades personal space
• Very transparent
• Lacks emotional intelligence

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The Constant Critic

• Prefers one-on-one, private settings for
  deniability
• Destroys confidence in demonstrated competence
• Lies about performance
• Most likely to traumatize
•  

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The Two-Headed Snake

• Jekyll-Hyde personality, passive-aggressive
  backstabber
• Vicious and vindictive in private
• Compulsive Lying
• Charm as a motive deception
• Dares to alter targets workplace reputation
• Difficult to detect

•  

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The Gatekeeper

• Sabotages everything goes through them
• Control freak
• Denies/blocks resources needed for success
• Shrinks time with unrealistic deadlines
• New jobs without training, budget or assistance
• No time off, no accommodation for doctor ordered
  work loads, adjustments
• Interferes with family or personal health
  obligations
• Deliberate, malicious timing
• First day back from medical leave
•  

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Factors Underlying Bullying

• Factors beyond employers control
• Evolution, biology
• Personality disorder or psychopath
• Family of origin experiences
• School yard bully grown up
• Exploiters and manipulators
• Employer rewards for aggression

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Factors Underlying Bullying contd

• Personal culture environmental factors,
  genetics
• Impoverished family history, discrimination
• Chronic work and family problems
• Genetic mental culture health disorders worsen
  with stress
• Workplace what is and what is not acceptable
  behaviour

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Factors Underlying Bullying contd

• Family of abuse verbal abuse or child-abuse
• Domestic abuse she is his property
• School bullying
• School violence
• Cyber bullying

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Reasons Why Adults Become Targets

• They dared to be independent
• Their competence is threatening
• They possess social skills
• They are non-confrontational
• They are ethical, whistleblowers
• The strong are targeted
•  

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Consequences Two-fold

• Impact on People
•  
• Biases against targets
• They are not believed
• They are blamed for provoking the bully
• Individuals pay the price with physical health
  impairments, i.e. diabetes, gastrointestinal
  disorders, Fibromyalgia
•  

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Consequences Contd

•  Psychological Health Effects
• Anxiety, high blood pressure, ulcers, skin rashes
• Clinical depression
• P T S (Post Traumatic Syndrome) Disorder
• Psychosomatic symptoms
• loss of self confidence

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Impact of Psychological Harassment

• Withdrawal from normal activities
• Withdrawal from social contacts
• Results in vicious cycle of inactivity and social
  isolation
• Cycle often leads to anxiety and mood problems
• Physical problems headaches, G.I., rash/hives,
  cold flu symptoms increase

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Trauma Symptoms

• Intrusive thoughts
• Flashback, nightmares, obsession
• Hyperventilation
• Irritability
• Paranoia
• Guardedness
• Avoidance
•  

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Co-Worker Inaction

• Resentment/isolation/abandonment
• Co-workers betray target in 49 of cases
• Fear of being next
• Mismanagement of agreement about circumstances
• Clique formation dominates (groupthink)
• Siding with aggressor (fear of being next)
•  

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What to Do If Bullied

• First speak to the bully and tell them you find
  their behavior unacceptable
• Majority of bullying goes on behind close doors.
  Tell a friend or colleague
• Call your union shop steward
• Keep a diary
• Tell your manager/supervisor
• If no resolve, file a formal complaint and/or
  grievance

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Laws/Legislation

• Worker Health Safety Laws
• Human Rights Act
• Canadian Criminal Code
• Collective Agreement
• Employer Policies (Ex No Bullying Policy)
•  

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Individual Solutions

• Name it
• Legitimize it yourself, stop self-blame
• Take time off, respite
• check mental and physical health
• check laws
• build case about bullying
• Expose the bully
• Bully is too expensive to keep

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Role of Union

• Have a central role in curbing bullying at work
• Support members who are being bullied
• Assist in negotiating anti-bullying policies with
  management
• Organize union action over bullying
• Provide advice and guidance
• Assist in representing members in any proceedings
  re bullying

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Return to Work Strategies

• Provide job description
• Offer change in job environment
• Document restrictions (occupational therapist)
• Modified duties
• Job shadowing
• Graduated return to work slow and monitored
• Social support (work and home)
• Periodic psychological follow-up appointments
• Team meetings

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Tangible Employer Costs

• Turnover and related costs
• Accidents by fatigued workers
• Absenteeism, lost productivity
• WCB
• Long-Term Disability
•  

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Intangible Employer Costs

• Talent flight of the best and brightest
• Sabotage and resistance
• Negative PR worst place to work
•  

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No-Bullying Policy

• A philosophy statement that clearly identifies a
  commitment
• to a safe and positive working environment
• Should Include
• What is Workplace Bullying?
• What it does not include
• Types of Bullying
• Legislation
• Effects of Bullying on individual (s)
• Effects of Bullying on the organization
• Responsibilities of Supervisors, Managers
• Responsibilities of Employees and Co-workers
• What to do if you are being bullied
• Policies and procedures
• Collective Agreement

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Preventing Workplace Bullying

• Consultation will help the Employer to
• Establish whether bullying is a problem in the
  workplace
• Determine the communication method
• Successfully implement preventative measures
• Provide assertiveness training in workplace

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Preventing Workplace Bullying

• Ways to Consult in the Workplace
• Health Safety Meetings
• Direct discussions
• Staff Meetings
• Brown Bag Lunch Meetings
• Special Working Groups/Committees

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Preventing Workplace Bullying

• What to Consult About
• Strategies for raising awareness
• A No-Bullying Policy
• Procedures for reporting incidents
• Procedures for investigating incidents
• Bullying Resolution Procedures

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Preventing Workplace Bullying

• Creating Awareness includes
• Promoting awareness of the No-Bullying Policy at
  all levels within the organization
• How to recognize Bullying
• Where to get further information

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Preventing Workplace Bullying

• Information should be provided when
• Recruitment of appointed or new employees
• When engaging contracted, temporary or casual
  workers

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IRS System

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To Be Effective

• All elements of the IRS must be working
  simultaneous for it to be effective.
• If one link in the chain does not do their part,
  your system will be ineffective and non-compliant.

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Resources Cited

• Workplace Bullying Dr. Gary Namie
• Worksafe Victoria, Australia
• Psychological Harassment
• Dr. V.C. Rowan
• Canada Safety Council

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Bullying in the Workplace

Marvin Meickel, Employee Co-Chair City of
Regina mmeickel_at_regina.ca 777-7710