subject: Relevant Human Resources Info About Corporate Bullies 1 [print this page] During the HR training period for HR personnel, one of the common issues raised is dealing with office bullies. Although the corporate world employs professional people, the diversity in personalities still leaves room for bullies to emerge in the work place every once so often. Realistically speaking, the work place is hardly any different in terms of how positive and negative personalities converge. Together, they create a culture that although has dominant traits that distinguish it, still thrives on individual eccentricities downplayed to meet a common goal.
Bullies can be found in almost every workplace.
Spotting a bully at first glance is near impossible, especially in a corporate environment. Only when you start spending time with one, interacting as you work together, will the traits that identify him surface. As with considerate people, bullies come in all shapes, sizes, ethnicity, levels of intelligence, background, and many more. Nonetheless, they are bound by any or all of these unifying traits: putting down people, talks over you during meetings, criticizes you, or steals credit for your work.
Any one exposed to such condescending treatment is likely to get demotivated and perform below expectations. Bullies, regardless of how useful they are at work, can prevent some coworkers from performing at their best. Thus, if not addressed, his behavior can seriously jeopardize the whole team's overall productivity.
Some victims will even opt to resign and look for work elsewhere, which poses a problem to the organization since his absence automatically costs the required productivity needed to meet a goal. Moreover, training a new employee will incur more expenses. If the bully is not given due reprimand, he is bound to look for new preys, even if his previous victim has already moved on.
Detecting a bully is easy since he or she is inclined to pick out your errors and often bring them up. Worse case scenarios classified under human resource issues usually involve informal defamation as he spreads false rumors to malign you or goes out of his way to sabotage your work.
Statistical Findings
Constant interaction and exposure to such treatment often results to the bullied coworker's losing his interest in his job. When this happens, not even the skills and experience of the bully himself can compensate for the loss of talent and manpower crucial to forwarding and maintaining the company's success and competitiveness in the market.
Working in cooperation with the Workplace Bullying and Trauma Institute (WBTI), the Zogby study came out with these findings:
Although 45% of Americans have never witnessed an actual bullying, 37% have experienced it. 12% have witnessed it personally.
There are more male bullies (60%) than females.
71% of female bullies prey on other women.
72% of bullies in the workplace are bosses.
62% of employers ignore bully issues.
37% of victims do not bring up their issues to the employer.
45% of the people who are bullied undergo stress-associated problems, which include debilitating anxiety, panic attack, and clinical depression (39%).
