ESTHER N NHETA
Workplace bullying is a pattern of inappropriate and unjustifiable behaviour directed against a specific employee by a group of co-workers or a supervisor.
Bullying at work frequently puts the target’s health and safety in danger. Bullying can be identified can come in various ways, including the propagation of false rumours, gossip, social isolation, and the other behaviours listed below.
This article provides a basic overview of workplace bullying, including how to recognise it, examples, and consequences, as well as court cases or lawsuits involving workplace bullying.
Bullying in the workplace is the abuse or misuse of power. Bullying is defined as behaviour that intimidates, degrades, offends, or humiliates a co-worker in public.
Bullying behaviour promotes low self-esteem and lack of confidence, both of which can impede development at work.
An employee who is bullied at work is more likely to provide poor service and low-quality products and jeopardise their right to dignity at work.
Bullying is not the same as aggression. Bullying, unlike aggressiveness, is characterised by repeated attacks against a single employee, resulting in a persistent pattern of behaviour. Many bullying situations involve employees bullying their peers.
How to identify Workplace bullying
These are some of the different sorts of bullying: verbal, physical, and visual.
- Verbal
Bullying often includes gossiping about the target to elicit a reaction from them. This includes sending the target inflammatory messages, which is frequently done to lower the target’s self-esteem. Bullies often inquire about the targets’ personal information, such as family history, religion, race, age, or other genetic diseases. One of the most popular forms of workplace verbal bullying is asking for sexual favours and dates. Making passive comments about someone only to mock them is also considered verbal bullying.
- Physical
People may not recognise that they are physically bullied since it may appear like it is just a kind touch with no malicious intent.
When a bully becomes physically aggressive, they may poke fun of the target’s attire or personal belongings. Bullying of this nature may even lead to the bully ruining the target’s property or work documents (violent behaviours).
- Visual
Visual bullying at work can sometimes take the form of sending rude, sexually explicit emails or text messages.
Bullying of this nature is most typical in an atmosphere with various people, particularly of various genders, yet it is entirely inappropriate.
Showing or watching pornographic films or images, wearing inappropriately revealing apparel, and making sexual attempts are all examples of visual bullying that might end up distracting other employees.
Examples of workplace bullying
- Physically or verbally abusing someone.
- Removing areas of responsibility for no apparent reason.
- Setting unrealistic deadlines that set the individual up for failure.
- Withholding critical information or intentionally providing incorrect information in order cause the target to make costly blunders.
- Making obscene jokes
- Invade someone’s privacy by snooping or stalking them.
- Assigning undue responsibilities or workloads to one individual (in a way that creates unnecessary pressure).
- Confusion is caused by yelling.
- Constantly or continuously criticizing someone.
- Insulting or dismissing someone’s viewpoints.
- Punishment that is unjustified (or unwarranted).
- Interfering with a person’s personal items or work equipment.
How to identify workplace bullying
Criticism
A bully will frequently criticise you in an unjustified or nonconstructive manner. If your boss is unhappy with the quality of your work, they can always offer improvements, such as how the same problem could be approached more effectively.
Blame Game
Bullies will play the blame game with their subordinates or peers without hesitation.
Bullies don’t like to take responsibility for their actions. Instead, they want others to take responsibility for their actions
Ignoring, Isolating
There are several ways to mentally harass someone: purposefully separate them from the rest of the team. You can be intentionally left out of group meetings, discussions, or decisions. Ignoring or avoiding someone on purpose causes them to mistrust themselves and their actions or behaviour.
Unrealistic expectations
You’re expected to perform difficult things in a short amount of time. You may be accused of incompetence if you fail to achieve unrealistic expectations. Being chastised for innocuous acts such as being five minutes late to a meeting, standing in the wrong direction, or answering the phone improperly are all examples of workplace bullying.
Manipulation
Bullies in the workplace are accustomed to getting their way, and the easiest method to do it is through manipulation. They frequently engage in passive-aggressive behaviour to make others feel intimidated or insecure. You’d find them ignoring you, prompting you to give in since you’re upset. On the other hand, they may lavish compliments on their co-workers to make them feel good.
Effects of workplace bullying
- Psychological Consequences
Although it may not look so, workplace bullying has a significant impact on mental health. Workplace bullying not only harms the victim’s physical well-being but also harms their mental health. Bullying is linked to psychological harassment and violence. Thus the effect on their mental health can be just as bad as physical abuse.
The following are psychological disorders that are closely linked to workplace bullying
Panic Attacks
When a victim of workplace bullying recalls a previous bullying encounter upon seeing the abuser or anything that reminds them of the incident, panic attacks are common. An anxiety attack can be severe at times.
Clinical Depressive Disorder
Because bullying is a set of incidents that repeats itself, a victim may acquire depression. Depression, as we know it, can have a variety of negative consequences and impacts. Depression can develop due to feelings of isolation, degradation, indifference, and violence that are deeply established in workplace bullying, especially if the victim keeps all of the pain, guilt, and shame to himself.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder)
When workplace bullying continues for an extended period, the victim may develop Complex PTSD. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that develops after a traumatic incident such as an accident, an assault, or harassment.
Physical Effects
- Effects on the body
Bullying at work can have severe physical consequences. Even if the bully does not hurt the victim physically, the impact on the victim’s productivity can cause physical problems.
According to a study, workplace bullying has an impact on a person’s physical well-being. The amount of sleep and rest that a person gets is linked to how often they are bullied. Because there is so much going on in a person’s head, they cannot sleep well due to the numerous thoughts circulating within them. Victims frequently experience existential crises as they struggle to process everything that is happening to them. This results in a lack of sleep and concentration.
How to deal with workplace bullying
- Learn about your company’s policies. Your firm should have a workplace behaviour policy that includes information about bullying. Find out as much information as possible, including notifying supervisors and the measures you may anticipate them to take.
- Begin casually. If you are comfortable doing so, the most significant thing you can do is talk to the bullying individual. They may not realise how their actions are hurting you in some circumstances. If you speak to them, they might think about how they’ve treated you.
- Any evidence should be kept. If someone asks you to back up your claims, noting the date, time, place, details, and names of any witnesses to the bullying could be pretty valuable. Save any obnoxious emails, and keep track of the times you were left out of important meetings.
- Find someone with whom you can converse. Bullying is a stressful situation to be in. You shouldn’t have to go through it on your own. Having someone, you can confide in can help you reduce the negative impact on your life.
Court case on workplace bullying
Workplace bullying in the United States: An analysis of state court cases
Abusive conduct” is defined as verbal, nonverbal, or physical conduct by an employee toward another employee that, based on its severity, nature, and frequency of occurrence, a reasonable person would conclude: is intended to cause intimidation, humiliation, or unwarranted distress; results in substantial physical or psychological harm as a result of intimidation, humiliation, or unwarranted distress; or expends substantial physical or psychological harm as a result of intimidation, humiliation, or (Utah State University, 2015).
In 2014, Tennessee passed the “Healthy Workplace Act,” which defined “abusive conduct” as “actions or omissions that would cause a reasonable person, depending on the intensity, nature, and frequency of the acts or omissions.
Repeated verbal abuse in the workplace, including derogatory remarks, insults, and epithets; verbal, nonverbal, or physical conduct in the workplace that is threatening, intimidating, or humiliating; or sabotage or undermining of an employee’s work performance (Tennessee Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations, 2015, p. 1)
The State of California changed its Government Code to define “abusive conduct” as behaviour in the workplace by an employer or employee that a reasonable person would find unfriendly, insulting, and unrelated to the employer’s legitimate economic objectives.
Repeated verbal abuse, such as the use of insulting remarks, slurs, and epithets, verbal or physical action that a reasonable person would find threatening, frightening, or humiliating, or gratuitous sabotage or undermining of a person’s work performance are all examples of abusive behaviour.
A single act shall not constitute abusive conduct unless severe and egregious(State of California, 2014). The employment policy adopted in Georgia utilizes a similar definition of the term abusive conduct to those found above (Fulton County, Georgia, 2012)
Bullying in the workplace should be considered a moral issue from a leadership perspective. The leadership should take note of it and put preventive policies in place.
Esther N Nheta is a consultant at Industrial Psychology Consultants (Pvt) Ltd a management and human resources consulting firm.
Phone +263 4 481946-48/481950/2900276/2900966
Cell number +263 715579527
Email: esther@ipcconsultants.com or visit our website at www.ipcconsultants.com
