Dealing with the Three Groups Necessary for Workplace Bullying

There have been a number of posts on this blog about bullying in the workplace. (Click here, here, here, and here.) State legislatures have considered anti-bullying laws, but so far, no such law has been enacted. So, we’re stuck with bullying?

In an article in the New York Times written by a pediatrician, the bully problem among children is addressed. The advice in this article applies equally to the workplace. Bullying involves three groups: bullies, victims and bystanders (enablers). To address the problem, it’s necessary to focus on each group. Here’s my application of the advice contained in the Times article to the workplace.

Managers and supervisors at all levels must commit to preventing bullying. Someone (victim, friend, bystander) needs to take the problem all the way to the CEO if necessary. Bullying must be understood as having a deleterious impact on the victim and his workplace productivity. The failure to address it allows a bully employee to continue to be a drag on an organization’s business.

Managers and supervisors must be attentive to signs of bullying. During meetings with employees about their performance reviews, there are ways to find out if employees are being bullied. HR professionals should teach managers and supervisors how to do this.

Coworkers (bystanders) must be trained on their role in preventing workplace bullying. They should feel responsible for treating a bully the way they would treat a thief.

Zero-tolerance policies may not be the best way to deal with bullies. Such policies basically push “the debt forward.” Another employer gets stuck with the bully.

Some bullying may require immediate termination. Usually, however, discipline should come first, with a view toward changing the bully. Employee assistance programs might also help. Bullies may be salvageable if there’s a concentrated effort to stand up to them by victims, bystanders, managers, supervisors, executives, and human resources professionals.

1. 

   Dr_Vee says:

   July 11, 2009 at 11:49 am

   I totally agree with this writer if only it would work in the organizations which really need intervention. The problem is that organizations which would take heed to such suggestions as listed in this article, are those which are willing to seek help and assistance and which realize the deleterious effect of bad bosses. As is with most situations in life, those organizations which really are rife with bully bosses are resistant and often callous towards any type of acknowledgment that bully bosses exist in their organization. Education is one of the fields where you will find bully bosses by the hundreds. But, my contention is that one has to look further up the chain of command because if the bullying exists, and the bully is allowed to stay, perhaps it is because the behavior is accepted in that workplace culture. This reasoning comes from observing HR investigations into complaints regarding workplace bullying bosses, performed by the friends of the workplace bully bosses. Does that make sense if they are really interested in changing? This is the practice at most organizations, to investigate themselves when the bosses who have been there for decades are friends with those who are doing the investigating? And, as far as the bystanders? Trust me they are in fear of retaliation as the targets are used to show bystanders what will happen to them if they speak up. I have lived through this and detail it in my book available on Amazon: How Organizations Empower the Bully Boss: A criminal in the workplace. I have been one to speak up and it has cost me my job in the past but there are better ways to fight back than by exposing yourself to being fired. I have witnessed my co-workers in tears, psychologically distressed and suffering PTSD. It is not an experience I choose to re-visit, but since bully bosses are so prevalent I am sure I will. Until there is a law we will have to find other ways to protect ourselves in the workplace and our jobs.