What Employees Consider To Be Bullying Behavior |
By Maryann King
Alexander Hamilton Institute
The phrase "bullying behaviors" brings to mind acts of physical or emotional abuse. Sarcastic jokes or rude interruptions aren't typically thought of as bullying by most of today's employers. But, according to a recent survey, that's exactly how employees interpret those behaviors. Not only are employees tagging some surprising behaviors abusive, but they're also demanding protections from such abuse, and the states are starting to pay attention.
The Employment Law Alliance, a San Francisco-based group, conducted a telephone survey of 1,000 adults and detailed interviews with 534 full- and part-time working adults. The study, released in March, focused on bullying behavior that does not rise to the level of illegal discrimination or harassment.
Of those surveyed, 44% said they have worked for a supervisor or employer who they considered abusive. The top five abusive behaviors employees have witnessed or heard about supervisors/employers engaging are: sarcastic jokes/teasing (60%); criticism of performance in front of co-workers (59%); interrupting in a rude manner (58%); dirty looks (56%); raised voice/yelling (55%). Rounding out the top 10: ignoring a person as if he/she is invisible; personal insults; demeaning/embarrassing an individual; spreading rumors/confidential information; inappropriate physical contact.
Employees are tired of their bullying bosses and want more solutions, the survey also revealed. 64% think they should have the right to sue and recover damages.
Those employees may eventually have a legal leg to stand on for being subjected to intimidating and abusive behavior that does not fit into the categories of sexual, racial, religious, etc., harassment, if state legislatures succeed in getting their proposed laws enacted.
States Taking A Stand
Legislation based on the model "Healthy Workplace Act" has been proposed in approximately 12 states, including California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Kansas, Massachusetts, Missouri, Montana, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, and Washington. Such a law would generally make abusive, bullying behavior tantamount to sexual harassment.
For example, Connecticut's proposal (Senate Bill 371) would make it illegal to subject an employee to an abusive workplace, defined as one where an employee is subjected to abusive conduct that is so severe it causes physical or psychological harm to him/her.
Message To Employers
The survey findings and state actions send the message that despite anti-harassment and discrimination laws, employees believe that not enough is being done to protect them and to put an end to abusive behavior in the workplace.
However, by taking a stand against abusive and bullying behavior in your workplace - no matter who the bullies are - you will show those employees that they don't need to involve a judge or jury.- Make typical bullying behaviors part of your company's anti-harassment policy. (Use the examples from the survey results as your guide.) The policy should also: advise employees how to report violations; prohibit retaliation for filing a complaint; state that complaints will be treated confidentially and investigated promptly; and specify discipline for policy violations. Distribute the policy to all staff members.
- Have a conflict resolution mechanism in place. Train selected employees in conflict management and mediation, or create an open-door policy and invite employees to use it when conflicts arise.
- Demand respectful treatment of and by all employees. Punish violators, and reward civility. For example, performance appraisal criteria should include attitude, teamwork, and ability to get along with others.
- Keep an eye on personality conflicts between managers and subordinates, and generally combative or controlling personality types, to ensure that bullying behavior is not allowed to emerge. Follow up to ascertain whether a conflict has truly been resolved.
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