Dealing With Workplace Bullying In A Professional Manner
Workplace bullying is a serious problem that has been plaguing employees around New Zealand and other countries. In a recent study that was conducted, it was found that there are more than 50 million Americans bullied at work each year. That means 50 million people are humiliated, degraded, embarrassed and undermined in their work performance by supervisors, management or even other employees. In NZ it is estimated that 20% of people suffer at the hands of workplace bullies. Bullying is even common in the public sector. Workplace bullying can become serious if not addressed, which is why it is important to take the necessary steps to overcome it professionally.
Learning About And Recognizing Bullying
Oftentimes, when adults are asked what bullying means, they conjure up images of playground fights and misbehaving children. Unfortunately, what many people don't realise is that this type of behaviour is often common in the workplace. The first step that any victim of bullying needs to understand is the behaviour patterns of a workplace bully.
Keep in mind, just because someone enjoys messing around with you at work, it doesn't necessarily make them a bully. What does make a bully?
-Does the person enjoy tormenting you?
-Do they seek out situations where they can undermine you?
-Do they make derogatory statements about you or your work?
If you've answered yes to any of those questions, you may have a potential bully on your hands.
Learning About And Recognizing Bullying
Oftentimes, when adults are asked what bullying means, they conjure up images of playground fights and misbehaving children. Unfortunately, what many people don't realise is that this type of behaviour is often common in the workplace. The first step that any victim of bullying needs to understand is the behaviour patterns of a workplace bully.
Keep in mind, just because someone enjoys messing around with you at work, it doesn't necessarily make them a bully. What does make a bully?
-Does the person enjoy tormenting you?
-Do they seek out situations where they can undermine you?
-Do they make derogatory statements about you or your work?
If you've answered yes to any of those questions, you may have a potential bully on your hands.
People generally conceived as bullies exhibit common behavioural traits that significantly show their bad sides. Below is a list of common characteristics that describe how most workplace bullies act on a day-to-day basis.
- They often overload people with work.
- Deliberately set people up to fail.
- Use disrespectful comments and name-calling.
- Often shout in private and in public during a variety of situations.
One of the hardest things for people who are being bullied at work to do is to admit it to themselves.
Oftentimes, people will talk excessively about work problems, suffer from nausea and insomnia, experience health problems and feel guilty about workplace troubles when they are being victimized. Don't let the bully get away with it! It is important to address bullying problems in a professional manner.
- They often overload people with work.
- Deliberately set people up to fail.
- Use disrespectful comments and name-calling.
- Often shout in private and in public during a variety of situations.
One of the hardest things for people who are being bullied at work to do is to admit it to themselves.
Oftentimes, people will talk excessively about work problems, suffer from nausea and insomnia, experience health problems and feel guilty about workplace troubles when they are being victimized. Don't let the bully get away with it! It is important to address bullying problems in a professional manner.
Taking Action Against The Bully
The first step is to directly tell the bully to stop and leave you alone. It is understandable that this is the one thing you don't want to do. However, you need to start getting a handle on the situation by communicating your frustration to the bully directly. Refrain from using name-calling or shouting, just be firm and to the point.
Start gathering information about the bullying events. Get a journal and keep track of the incidents by recording exactly what has happened, when it happened, how it happened and any potential witnesses who saw the events unfold. One of the best ways to get a bully to leave you alone is to collect enough evidence to provide proof to a legal team or to your superiors.
It is important to gather as many witnesses as you can. Choose someone you trust and know well enough to confront about what's going on with you. It is advisable to choose someone who works around the same time as you do. Keep in mind, if you are being victimized by this person, there is a likely chance that someone else is too. The more people are willing to stand behind you, the better your chances of getting the bully to stop.
After you've collected evidence, keep calm before contacting the right people. You don't want to run into your supervisor's office yelling incoherently because it can make you seem whiny or even like you're overreacting.
Take your situation to your HR management team or supervisor first. Give them a fair amount of time to sort this out. However, if nothing has happened within a reasonable amount of time, take it one step higher to upper management. It is important to stand your ground and even to consider taking legal action if the company you work for doesn't take you seriously.
If you are forced to take legal action, then do a bit more research first. The area of employment law is one of the most complicated so not all lawyers can offer you support in this area. So call a few local law firms and see if they have an employment lawyer on their staff. Ask to meet them and see if they have experience with workplace bullying cases.
Once you feel comfortable with that particular lawyer, then they will be able to give you the necessary advice or even begin the process of taking legal action.
A good law firm in Albany that has an employment law department is McVeagh Fleming. You can find out more about them on this website.
The first step is to directly tell the bully to stop and leave you alone. It is understandable that this is the one thing you don't want to do. However, you need to start getting a handle on the situation by communicating your frustration to the bully directly. Refrain from using name-calling or shouting, just be firm and to the point.
Start gathering information about the bullying events. Get a journal and keep track of the incidents by recording exactly what has happened, when it happened, how it happened and any potential witnesses who saw the events unfold. One of the best ways to get a bully to leave you alone is to collect enough evidence to provide proof to a legal team or to your superiors.
It is important to gather as many witnesses as you can. Choose someone you trust and know well enough to confront about what's going on with you. It is advisable to choose someone who works around the same time as you do. Keep in mind, if you are being victimized by this person, there is a likely chance that someone else is too. The more people are willing to stand behind you, the better your chances of getting the bully to stop.
After you've collected evidence, keep calm before contacting the right people. You don't want to run into your supervisor's office yelling incoherently because it can make you seem whiny or even like you're overreacting.
Take your situation to your HR management team or supervisor first. Give them a fair amount of time to sort this out. However, if nothing has happened within a reasonable amount of time, take it one step higher to upper management. It is important to stand your ground and even to consider taking legal action if the company you work for doesn't take you seriously.
If you are forced to take legal action, then do a bit more research first. The area of employment law is one of the most complicated so not all lawyers can offer you support in this area. So call a few local law firms and see if they have an employment lawyer on their staff. Ask to meet them and see if they have experience with workplace bullying cases.
Once you feel comfortable with that particular lawyer, then they will be able to give you the necessary advice or even begin the process of taking legal action.
A good law firm in Albany that has an employment law department is McVeagh Fleming. You can find out more about them on this website.