Friday
Tuesday
Workplace Harassment is a Form of Discrimination
Fcc.gov - site helps you understand what is workplace harassment.
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission - further insight as to how workplace harassment is defined by our government.
Strategic HR-ManagEase - there are frequently asked questions and answers about workplace harassment on this website.
About.com - how to handle workplace harassment
Monday
You Can Conquer Workplace Bullying Without Fighting
In dealing with bosses who bully, first absorb her attack.
· Calm her by speaking in a low but self-confident tone.
· Physically stand your ground. Do not back away. "Own" your space.
· Show her that you understand her immediate problem and what she wants.
· With your voice, tone and body language, show her that you don't take her attack personally.
Second, use the force of the bully's attack to subdue her.
· Ask her to restate her main point.
· Ask for her relevant opinions and suggested solutions.
· Listen actively. Paraphrase her ideas and ask follow-up questions.
Third, give a meaningful response.
· Let her know you want to help her, if possible. Again, stand your ground. Control your voice and tone.
· Summarize the situation and options. Use the same terminology and phrases as the bully.
· Give your conclusions. Tell the bully what you're going to do.
Finally, respond effectively to the bully's objections.
· Restate your own intentions.
· Describe the bully's options again.
· Explain the benefits and problems of each option.
· Ask the bully to make a simple choice.
Even bosses who bully ultimately have a job to do. Your job is to do the work--and the bully knows it. Stand up to the bully; offer her choices that you can live with. She may begin to see you as an ally instead of an impediment.
You have worried, analyzed and suffered long enough from bullying in the workplace - Now it's time to re-claim the confidence and respect you deserve!
Now you can be Bully Free at Work!
Tuesday
Wednesday
Can There Be A Psychopaths At Your Workplace?
Psychopaths are usually seen in roles of self centered individuals who care about no one but themselves who do great harm. Their motto may well be “I don’t do anything that is not in my interest and that I do not get my piece – right away”. Or it may be that this deviant behavior is below the surface and never noticed or apparent.
It is often said in retrospect that the “Axe Murderer” was a quiet person who kept to himself, may have been a good family man and bothered no one.
Psychopaths are usually seen in serial killers, rapists or sadists in Hollywood movies. They appear in the media and literature. Think of an early model as the Zodiac Killer in the Bay area of San Francisco. However these same people and personalities are never expected to cross our paths in real life. Yet it is estimated that approximately 1 percent of the general population fits the mold. It’s only a matter of time until you cross paths with a psychopath in real life at your workplace or place of employment.
What exactly is a psychopath? In clinical psychology a psychopath is defined as a condition characterized as a condition characterized by a lack of empathy or conscience, poor impulse control and / or manipulative behavior.
How can you determine whether a fellow worker is a workplace psychopath? A leopard does not lose their spots. Similarly psychopaths, either on the loose or under fire may well indicate or revert to certain personality traits and behaviors.
First of all does the person show no remorse no matter how much they exhibit mean behavior – whether it be victimization, talking behind the backs of fellow employees or worse and backstabbing. Is the person more than an excellent talker – a story teller of lies? Even if caught with lies and deceit do they show no remorse – just switch tack with another tale – as if everyone else is both foolish, a mark and that they are smarter than everyone else. It’s as if the world is there to be plundered – for their enjoyment and pleasure. Watch for the pleasure that such people take in their deeds of trouble. Everyone makes mistakes or may be forced into situations that they would prefer not to be in. The difference is that these people relish and are proud of these deeds and events – when it should be the other way around.
Sometimes these people are loners. Some of the times they will even function in groups. It can even be family groups to rip off and plunder everyone else outside of their close (or perhaps not close and self hating) group of vagabonds and carpetbaggers. Such individuals and groups can be seen to prey on people’s weaknesses and insecurities – especially low self esteem. It’s as if the undertone is “If you do not do what I want …. Give me possessions or money that I want … You cannot be part of the group ….. Or you will face abandonment.”
It’s not uncommon in the workplace but these people have an abnormal, almost pathological fear of failure. “I must be number one” is their constant internal motto. Along with that they may well rush to take credit for other people’s work and successes. Again these traits are not those of psychopaths – yet the pattern of such behavior and personality traits along with the rest of the ball of wax should raise alarm bells in your mind.
The problem is that these psychopaths do not only negatively affect a few people in the organization. Given a level of authority in modern large corporations the effects and damage that these psychopaths can be great. If a psychopath considers everyone else, especially people they have outdone or outsmarted as downright foolish or even stupid rather than helpful souls who were taken advantage of and in addition the psychopathological culprit shows no guilt for making decisions that negatively affect the company, shareholders or employees then this is a recipe for great disaster and heartaches . Think of Tyco, Adelphia Communications, Enron and WorldCom.
Bay Area WordManitoba Job ShopAce-Training.
Companies self-destruct when workplace bullies run amok!
I have vivid memories of being bullied when I was in the fourth grade. Darrell would line me and other classmates up each morning and extort our lunch money under threat of beating us to a pulp! Darrell had already missed about two grades and towered over everyone. We were thoroughly intimidated. Growing tired of watching other kids enjoying their lunches I came up with an idea. I'll tell my mom about it and she will get him off my back! I knew my dear mother would show me empathy.
Wrong! She gave me one of the worst thrashings of my life and said, "Don't you let that boy take your lunch money. I'm going to call your teacher tomorrow to make sure you eat lunch." Now I was really in a jam, I had to decide who I was more afraid of Mom or Darrell! I didn't get an inch of sleep that night and the next morning went off to school hoping to hide from Darrell. Unfortunately, he caught me before the homework bell and proceeded to pound me for refusing to cough up my lunch money.
During the course of the fight I remember being cheered on by other victims of Darrell's tyranny. Mercifully, the teachers arrived and saved me from further punishment. I looked at Darrell and to my amazement, I had actually bloodied his nose! As we were marched to the principal's office, I was cheered and patted on the back by my classmates. I also got a lot of attention from the girls in my class. I explained to the principal about Darrell's extortion racket and mom's response. He sent me back to class and Darrell was suspended for a week. After that, I never had any more problems with Darrell. We in fact became good friends.
Unfortunately there are "Darrells and Darrellettes" in the workplace who are just as intimidating to fellow employees. Standing up to workplace bullies can be just as frightening for the victims. Workplace bullying can take on different forms such as
psychological abuse
physical abuse
emotional abuse
verbal and non verbal abuse
sabotage of the victims work product
According to Wikipedia workplace bullying, "is the tendency of individuals or groups to use persistent aggressive or unreasonable behavior against a co-worker." From my workplace experience, I have witnessed bullying of customers, vendors, visitors and other interested parties! Bullies in the workplace often take advantage of their power by...
humiliating
insulting
affronting and confronting
intimidating
...the "target" of their abuse. Many times this behavior is played out in front of witnesses to destroy the victim's self esteem. When management allows bullying, trust in the workplace is nonexistent. Studies show that when there is an environment of distrust, employees tend to perform poorly. So bullying is bad for business. when employers are aware of bullying from employees and managers and do nothing to correct it, they share in the negative consequences. Workplace bullies come in all shapes, genders, races and sizes and have a great need for control. Here are the four basic types of workplace bullies.
Yellers
They always have to talk over the target(s).
Blockers
This type likes to undermine the reputation of the target and destroy work product.
Backstabbers
Self explanatory, they work in the shadows spreading ugly rumors and gossip aimed at the target.
Nitpickers
This bully lives to find fault with everything the victim does no matter how trivial. The bully will trash any suggestions by the target for improving workplace performance and efficiency as well.
A national poll conducted by the Workplace Bullying Institute says 37 percent or 54 million American employees have been or are bullied at work. Gary Namie, director of the Institute says, "It’s a silent epidemic". Workplace bullying is also called "mobbing" when two or more managers or employees gang up on a victim. Co-workers who witness bullying have increased levels of low morale and stress. Employees who are the targets exhibit...
insomnia
stroke
depression
migraine headaches
low self esteem
high levels of stress disorder
suicidal tendencies
greater risk of heart disease
Because there are no laws protecting employees from bullying there is no clear definition for it. That makes it hard to distinguish from other behaviors such as sexual and racial harassment. To this point, the federal government has no workplace bully laws. Businesses and organizations by and large don't have policies to prevent it. However, several states have proposed legislation to provide employees some protection. There are some things employees can do to protect themselves.
Learn more about it
Stay calm
Promote your good work
Inform management of the problem(if the bully is the manager go over his/her head)
Understand the bully is the problem not you
Keep good records detailing the bullies behavior over a period on time. This includes names, dates, times, places, witnesses, etc.
Try to get the bully to create a paper trail for you. You would be amazed at how easy it is to get people behaving badly in the workplace to email their negative intent toward you. I have successfully used email that required a response to accomplish this. Keep all the documentation you receive from the bully that helps you prove his/her accusations against you are false.
Finally, if possible always try to have one or more witnesses who aren't intimidated or a part of the bullies "mob" around as witnesses to what is said and done.
Raising awareness and making a stand like the one I did against Darrell are the most effective ways to discourage and prevent workplace bullying. Seeking legal guidance is always an option as well until specific laws are passed to protect employees.
Yancey Thomas Jr. has functioned as a certified and trained mediator in alternative dispute resolution of employment and general civil issues for over 10 years. He is a national panel mediator/neutral through the Cornell University Alliance for Dispute Resolution with emphasis on employment/workplace disputes. As an employee, he has a unique perspective on how to prepare for employment. Yancey's you can learn basic employee rights site offers the job seeker and employee more information on achieving workplace success! Follow this link for more relevant info on workplace bullying.