Bullying is extremely common when you’re in school. In fact, a lot of people still have some unpleasant memories from their teenage years that trigger certain behaviours in them. Unfortunately, it isn’t one of those things that only occur in the vicinity of a school. Offices can have bullies too. And they’re more common than you might think. A survey conducted by Career Builder revealed that a whopping 55 percent of Indian employees are being bullied or harassed at their workplace in one form or the other.
Bullying at work often involves an abuse of power, but even co-workers that hold equal power can bully each other. Intimidating, humiliating, and degrading someone become commonplace in toxic work environments. It creates a feeling of helplessness in the target and can lead to mental-health related problems ranging from minor stress to serious issues like suicidal thoughts. However, one must note that there is a difference between bullying and aggression. Aggression is usually confined to a single incident. On the other hand, bullying involves repeated actions against the said target. When you start noticing a pattern, that’s when you can be sure that you, or someone else is being bullied.
How to deal with workplace bullying?
Now that we’ve identified what a workplace bully could potentially look like, let’s have a glance at some easy measures one can adopt to deal with harassment and bullying efficiently.
- Keep a track of the events:?This is the first thing that you should do. “Start developing a journal and write things down as they happen. Sometimes you might forget all the little details which is why it’s important to note them down in real time,” says Dr C Manjula Rao, clinical psychologist, Apollo Health City, Hyderabad.
- Physical evidence is important:?It’s common for your bully to be someone that holds more power than you. Due to this, the HR might not believe your accusations instantly. “Save all the threatening emails, screenshots and even physical notes if any and use them as evidence when required,” says Dr Rao.
- Confront your bully:?This might be incredibly unpleasant and awkward but before you report your bully, try confronting them one last time. Remember to bring someone trustworthy along with you so that you have a witness. No matter how rudely they behave, keep your calm. They might try to get a reaction out of you but you need to hold your ground.
- Report them:?“If the problem doesn’t stop even after your conversation then don’t waste time before reporting your bully to the HR Department,” says Dr Rao. Submit all the evidence and if possible, ask the witnesses to give their statements as well.
- Consult a lawyer:?Bullying is not technically an illegal activity but under certain circumstances it might directly or indirectly lead to events that require legal action. For example, if your bully is threatening your life or trying to make sexual advances, talk to your lawyer.
- Talk to people:?The more, the merrier. While it might be embarrassing to some people, hiding incidents of bullying and harassment only makes it worse. “Tell everyone that’s close to you. Your friends, co-workers and family members would love to help you. If things get serious, don’t wait before consulting a therapist,” she says. Your mental health matters more than anything else in this situation.
How to help someone else that is being bullied?
Even if you’re not the target yourself, a lot of times you might witness acts of bullying and harassment happening right in front of your eyes. People often don’t say anything because they fear for their job and don’t want to implicate themselves in someone else’s problems but not speaking up against evil is almost as bad as the act itself. The next time you see someone that is struggling, you can take the following easy steps to help your colleague:
- Offer them your support:?Even if you don’t want to become a part of the incident, this is the bare minimum that you could do. They will appreciate any help that they can get.
- Intervene if you think things are getting serious:?If you notice the bullying incidents getting worse, you should form a group and intervene. The bully might try to deny the accusations, which is why it’s best to do it in real-time. So the next time you see someone being harassed: Speak up.
- Listen to their story:?Your colleague might not be comfortable speaking to an expert just as yet, so you can temporarily take that place. All you have to do is be open-minded and lend them a sympathetic ear.
- Help them report the incident:?You might be reluctant to do this, but it is important that you help your colleague speak to the HR manager. This way, you can make sure that their rights are protected.
