Bullying takes toll
in workplace
Anita Bruzzes, Home
News Tribune Online April 23, 2007
From the Web, April
25, 2007
Here's the funny thing about
bullying: It doesn't go away when you become an adult.
The not-so-funny truth is that while
you may have believed you would not face bullying once you left the schoolyard,
it is unfortunately alive and well in workplace cubicles everywhere.
Being a bullying target as an adult also feels much the same as it did as a kid.
It's scary and humiliating. You don't want to tell anyone because you
suffer from a mixture of embarrassment, fear and shock. Eventually, you
may get stomachaches, lose sleep, pull away from your family and friends and
feel very angry, depressed and alone.
Fortunately, researchers like Pamela Lutgen-Sandvick are getting attention from
employers worried about this problem. Her message to company brass is
clear: Ignore bullies in the workplace and it will impact your bottom
line.
As anyone knows, that's a statement that can get some results.
"The turnover from bullying is horrendous," Lutgen-Sandvick says. "The
most valuable employees often leave. So what you end up with is an
impoverished workplace — the people who stay are the ones who have no other
choice."
That's not exactly the kind of workforce a company needs to compete successfully
in today's global marketplace. That's why more managers are listening to
people like Lutgen-Sandvick, an assistant professor of communication at the
University of New Mexico and an expert in workplace bullying.
"The thing about workplace bullying is that it is a lot harder to describe than
what happens when you're a kid," she says. "It's more politically masked,
more subtle."
Many characteristics for bullies are still the same, however. In the
workplace these people seek to isolate their targets, to make them ineffective
by bullying them into submission.
Further, while we may have been counseled to stand up to bullies when we were
younger, many adults in the workplace take just the opposite tactic and leave.
This practice is intended to send a "message" to higher-ups, to punish the
organization for letting bullying take place. Lutgen-Sandvick says people
quit to show their frustration and their anger at management, and those left
behind hold it up as an example that there is "something very wrong in the
organization."
So why don't those who are bullied simply go to their bosses and reveal what's
happening? Because, she says, providing evidence against manipulative,
sneaky bullies can be tough to do.
"I often advise people to quit in these situations," Lutgen-Sandvick says.
"That's because if you stay and fight it, it's going to take a toll."
Still, there are ways to win against bullies — it just takes some planning and
preparation, she says. Employees tired of bullying should:
• Gather support. When workers
collectively resist, they are more likely to gain the attention of management.
The group can have bullied and non-bullied workers, who often lend credence to
the group.
• Write it down. By documenting incidents
and evidence of bullying — and the potential costs of the behavior — management
is much more likely to pay attention and take action. By providing
research material that outlines the cost of bullying on the workplace (turnover,
loss of talented workers, lost productivity), management can be more easily
convinced of the problem.
• Be factual. Don't say things like
"never" and "always." Write down each and every bullying incident.
When presented in a calm, factual manner, the bullying pattern becomes clear to
managers.
Lutgen-Sandvick says there are ways to confront a bully individually, but those
efforts are not always as successful. "There have been a few cases where
these people are confronted: "You know, I love my job but it hurts me when
you ...,' " she says. "But this may not work because these kind of people
often have little or low developed empathy."
GayPASG Note:
Visit
www.NJCivilRights.org
for FACT SHEETS and reporting on Harassment and Bullying.
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