Bullying in the Workplace


Oct 22, 2016

The presence of bullies and jerks in the workplace is not much of a concern for most companies. However, having too many of such people around and not actively avoiding a culture that fosters bullies, is not good practice. In fact it can have quite an impact on company performance and the bottom-line. This is because bullying can (among other things) have an effect on morale, health, productivity, idea generation and employee turnover.

Here are some findings from a study by the Workplace Bullying Institute in America:

  • 37% of workers have been bullied
  • Most bullies are bosses (72%)
  • Most Targets (57%) are women
  • 62% of employers ignore the problem
  • 45% of Targets suffer stress-related health problems (debilitating anxiety, panic attacks, clinical depression)
  • 40% of bullied individuals never tell their employers

For organisations, the message is clear - seek out workplace bullies and correct their behaviour or fire them. Don’t avoid taking action, especially if you feel that the employee is a good performer. The overall contribution he/she has could in fact be negative, when you take into account the effects of bullying.

For individuals, given that majority of bullying is done by bosses, the first and most important step is to realise that you are being bullied. Many people either ignore the problem or think that they just have a bad boss and thats how bosses are. According to Dr. Gary Nami, Founder of the Workplace Bullying Institute, these are some signs to look out for:

  • You attempt the obviously impossible task of doing a new job without training or time to learn new skills but that work is never good enough for the boss
  • Surprise meetings are called by your boss with no results other than further humiliation
  • Everything your tormenter does to you is arbitrary and capricious, working a personal agenda that undermines the employer’s legitimate business interests
  • Others at work have been told to stop working, talking or socializing with you
  • You constantly feel agitated and anxious, experiencing a sense of doom, waiting for bad things to happen
  • No matter what you do, you are never left alone to do your job without interference
  • People feel justified screaming or yelling at you in front of others, but you are punished if you scream back
  • HR tells you that your harassment isn’t illegal, that you have to “work it out between yourselves”
  • You finally, firmly confront your tormentor to stop the abusive conduct, you are accused of harassment
  • You are shocked when accused of incompetence despite a history of objective excellence, typically by someone who cannot do your job
  • Everyone — co-workers, senior bosses, HR — agrees (in person and orally) that your tormentor is a jerk, but there is nothing they will do about it (and deny saying what they said later when asked to support you)
  • Your request to transfer to an open position under another boss is mysteriously denied

Source: Sandbox Advisors, Workplace Bullying Institute

 

  About The Author  

Amit is an experienced career, business and HR professional. Previously, he has worked with organisations such as Bain & Company, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup. Amit has advanced degrees/qualifications in Career Counselling, Organisational Psychology & HR, Occupational Psychometrics, Career/Life Coaching & Business.
  1. Workplace Bullying

    Bullying cannot be defended on any reasonable grounds: it’s expensive; it
    creates turnover of the best and brightest; it impairs productivity; it
    damages employee health; it reinforces a workplace culture of
    destruction; it tarnishes an employer’s good reputation; and it lowers
    everyone’s quality of life and well being.

    Reply ↓
  2. Rddgrt

    Does this bullying also impacts the job search in another
    company?

    As we all know that all company HR do internal reference
    checks before deciding on a candidate for any job position. Generally before
    closing on a candidate, HR of a company checks with the HR of the candidate’s
    company. And HR always have links all around.

    Do bullying victims face trouble in getting through the
    selection process of another job position because of these internal reference
    checks by HR?

    With my experience I can say that YES the bullying
    victims face a lot of trouble getting through the selection process of any job
    position. Due to the negative feedback from internal reference checks by HR,
    they are lesser preferred over other candidates.

    In my job search (both in my previous company and the current
    company), I have often experienced that in spite of ALL my effort, repeated follow-up,
    interest in the job opening, perfect fit for the role, being a victim to the
    bullying culture does make the selection chances very lesser.

    How to leave this place when there is NO other job offer
    in hand?

    I am really tired of trying. In spite of ALL my
    credentials, certifications, education, all what matters is that I have
    suffered at the hands of the bullies. How to get out of this trap?

    I am sure that there are many others who would have faced
    similar situation in their careers. If you are reading this, then please share
    with me your experience. How did you come out of it? What different did you
    try? Your ideas, suggestions could do wonders for me.

    Reply ↓
  3. Rddgrt

    One
    more strange aspect to this bullying culture is the use of SPY GADGETS by the
    team members (either guys or gals) to get some proof against the rival
    team/member. The use of spy gadgets is a common trend in this company. These
    gadgets are mostly used by the long-serving employees of this company.

    Generally
    in a team, at the least one person definitely owns some sort of a spy gadget.
    Their strategy is to FIRST BULLY (to ANY extent possible, be it personal or
    abusive, you just cannot imagine) the rival team/person and EXCITE them to
    REACT/SAY something offensive/ridiculous. Then they RECORD this rival’s
    voice/video (ONLY WHEN the bullied team/person reacts) and present this to the
    senior people (managers/senior leads) and complain about the wrong behaviour of
    the rival team/member. Most of the managers are aware of this and they don’t
    care. But this tactic also works like a sort of blackmailing the rival team/member
    by telling them indirectly (by getting this information passed through someone
    else) so that they do not complain as they themselves may get in trouble.

    I
    am sure that most of these bullies are aware that there is NO legislation in
    Singapore for bullying (verbal abuses or inappropriate behaviour) and hence the
    only defence has to be from the Civil/Criminal Law. That is the reason every
    team/member is desperate to have these recordings to save from any legal
    action/consequence.

    Most
    of the new employees in this company are black-mailed using this bullying
    tactic. First they are bullied in a very bad way (abusive/personal, you cannot
    imagine), and then eventually their REACTION gets recorded by someone
    (generally the rival group of the team he/she has joined). Thereafter they are blackmailed
    for doing whatever the rival team/member wants, be it bullying someone else or
    working against their own team, could be anything. These senior employees
    threaten for any LEGAL consequence (in case someone complains, then their
    recording might also be used).

    And
    as I told earlier also, the HR, the Senior Management are aware of everything,
    yet they are completely ignorant. Many people have tried to complain in the
    past but none of them has got any support/justice from either the HR or the
    Senior Management.

    Even
    the Ministry of Manpower cannot do anything in this? Please tell how to get out
    of this messy situation.

    Reply ↓
  4. Rddgrt

    Workplace (in IT) Bullying that I have faced in
    Singapore since 2007

    I am an IT Professional and this is my true story.

    In 2007, when I was working in my previous IT Company, I
    came from India to work for one of their public sector projects in Singapore. During
    the initial settling phase itself, the new guys were bullied by the project
    managers (all Singaporean PRs) to prove their own worth (many of these managers
    had prior experience with similar public sector projects in Singapore). Since
    it was my first onsite trip, I somehow adjusted to the situation. Unfortunately
    at that same time I faced certain health issues, had a surgery also (took a
    couple of weeks off).

    After sometime, my program manager (like senior manager)
    asked me a favour by working overtime for another assignment in another
    project. This senior manager was extremely bossy and known for being hard. I
    thought that this was a good chance to prove myself in his eyes. So I accepted
    and started working even harder to fulfil the tasks in both projects (my role
    at that time was of a senior developer). Fortunately I started enjoying my time
    in this other project, due to some appreciation by colleagues and managers in
    that project. And finally it ended up with a positive feedback.

    Then came the annual appraisal in the mid of 2008. This
    senior/program manager recommended me for a promotion in the initial phase of
    the appraisal process. And this was in spite of the negative feedback (not so
    good) of my immediate project manager (who disliked me). Then came the final
    phase of the appraisal process which was decided by the senior/middle
    management based on vertical and company profits. It was during this time that
    my immediate project manager became a real bully.

    He passed a lot of underline comments, sometimes became
    abusive, and tried his best to undermine all my hard work. He behaved as if my
    tasks counted for nothing, and could not be achieved without his inputs (none
    of which he actually ever gave). Every time he tried to keep me out of the loop
    including those discussions/meetings which directly related to my tasks.
    Eventually this frustrated me and I discussed this with my colleagues (many of
    them were facing similar heat from this manager directly or indirectly). But
    none of them raised voice because it was appraisal time and everyone wanted to
    play safe.

    Finally because of his negative and biased behaviour, my
    appraisal was screwed (an average rating). The senior manager blamed this on me
    because I discussed about what was happening with the fellow colleagues. After
    that I started searching for another job in Singapore, but nothing worked
    (being on Employment Pass was also a factor).

    Then in early 2009, the chairman of this previous company
    got involved in a huge scam. The company was in a lot of trouble and it was
    hell (sleepless nights). Everyone (from the bottom to the top) in the company
    was afraid of losing their jobs and were just appeasing their bosses. I took it
    as an opportunity to pursue some certifications and credentials, hoping that it
    may help find another job quickly. In next few months, I completed one
    technical certification and one project management credential (PMP). Everyone
    thought that I will definitely leave now because I may get a good job, and
    hence things (bullying) improved a bit.

    Unfortunately I did not get any job offer, and eventually
    in early 2010 my program manager (he was a new one, the earlier one was thrown
    out by the company in mid of 2009) asked me to contribute more by working
    overtime for another assignment in other project (and this was completely off
    the record). Once again I agreed hoping that it would be a learning phase. But
    it turned out to be another nightmare. That project was the worst I ever
    imagined (a horrible mess). Till today I do not understand why the client (a
    Singapore public sector company) did not sue them. Eventually I had to say no
    to that project’s leadership and come out of it. Now this senior manager used
    this as a negative point against me. He even criticized me for my work,
    overlooking all the hard work that I had put in. Before that I thought that
    this guy was cool, but then I understood what others said about him was true.

    Then came the appraisal process of 2010, it was during
    this time that this senior manager asked to do a huge task all alone without a
    team, and the timeline given was totally impractical (it was virtually
    impossible). In spite of all my effort and hard work, my appraisal was
    completely screwed (this was the worst in my career). The sole reason was that
    this management wanted some scapegoats because the project’s contract extension
    was almost denied by the client (they had already put up a tender). That was
    the first time I felt that I did a mistake by coming in this IT industry. Maybe
    I am too simple a person for such cheap/unprofessional politics & tactics.

    Finally by god’s grace, that horrible project was taken
    away by the client in the end of 2010. And then the company asked everyone in
    the project team to either leave (for Singaporeans) or go back to offshore (where
    at that time, the situation was worse and the future was insecure). It was
    during that time that I got a job offer (a permanent one) from my present
    company (a reputed IT company based out of Singapore). So I resigned and then
    joined my present company in early 2011.

    Here I enjoyed the first 2 days of the company’s induction
    program. After that I had to meet my supervisor who happened to be one of the
    directors (by designation). I will never forget my first meeting with that classy
    lady. She was not only demoralizing but abusive also (trust me on this). It was
    my third/fourth day in the company. You can imagine my pain. How can someone
    join under such a person? I simply did not understand that if the directors
    feel so uncomfortable talking to people at my level (a project lead), then why should
    we directly report to them. Can they not create a hierarchy to streamline the
    process and the person of contact?

    After that I met my project manager who initially
    happened to be nice but was completely out of control of his team. He was even
    bullied by them. That made things worse for me also. The colleagues with whom I
    had to initially liaise for my tasks simply took advantage of this manager and he
    slowly started losing faith in me. This is the first company I have seen where the
    concerned people do not share the necessary stuff also for the other person to
    work (and the managers do not intervene at all).

    Here most of the project managers are sitting ducks. Some
    of them even prefer doing the low level tasks on their own just to avoid their
    team bullies. When these project managers are not in control, then how can they
    make sure that a new team member gets a nice environment. These managers often
    pretend as if they are in control of their team and they are the ones on whose
    order the bullies are being bullied. In reality, these project managers now do
    not have a choice.

    And above all, this Director and her Vice President (whom
    she reports) simply ignore whatever is happening. It appears as if they are
    enjoying all this. I am working here since last 15 months, and I still do not
    understand how this bullying (highly abusive) culture satisfies the goals from
    the senior management’s perspective. The HR is completely ineffective because
    of the involvement of the senior management.

    Honestly like me there are many more victims in this
    company. I feel more upset when I see them giving in to this bullying culture. What
    should I do? How to report this and to whom (and what would be the consequences
    thereafter)? Is there any LAW against such targeted bullying in Singapore? Or
    is this the true face of today’s IT industry in Singapore?

    Please suggest something practical and effective.

    Reply ↓
  5. Rddgrt

    In my previous company, I was called from offshore here to Singapore to work for a Singapore project. Unfortunately, during the initial settling phase itself new guys were bullied by the middle management to prove their own worth. At that time it became worse for me because I faced certain health issues, had a surgery also. On joining back, after a couple of months, the management asked me to work for multiple projects. I accepted and started working even harder to fulfill the tasks in both projects (my role was of a senior developer). Luckily I made good relations with people in this new project and enjoyed my time there (worked in that project for 3-4 months). Finally it ended up with a positive feedback. Then came the appraisal process, and it all started from there. I was recommended for a promotion by the senior manager. But this was in spite of the negative feedback of the immediate manager (who disliked me). And he became abusive, passed a lot of underline comments and treated my tasks as if they counted for nothing. Most of the times he kept me out of the loop even for those things which could have affected my tasks. Eventually this frustrated me and I openly discussed this with my colleagues. Noone helped or listened to me. Instead they all took the side of the manager because noone wanted trouble. Actually that was appraisal time and everyone wanted to play safe.

    And then my entire appraisal was screwed. The senior manager took himself out by blaming on me as if it was my fault to dicuss about what is happening with the fellow colleagues. I then decided to look for another job. But nothing worked. Then unfortunately my company chairman got involved in a huge scam of 2009. The company was all in trouble and it was hell. Sleepless nights. Everybody was just foot lickering, from bottom to top. It was then I realized that I need to enhance my skills by doing some certifications and credentials. Fortunately I completed one Java certification and PMP. Everyone thought that I will definately leave now, because I will get a good job. Things improved a bit.

    But eventually I struggled getting another job. After sometime again the management asked me to work for multiple projects. I agreed hoping that it will be a learning phase. But it turned out to be another nightmare. That project was the worst I have ever imagined. I really do not know why the client did not sue them. Eventually I had to fight and come out of it. And that was another point for this management to use against me. Then after sometime I was asked to do a task ALONE without a team and the timeline given was totally impractical. Again this was right at the appraisal time. And finally my appraisal was completely screwed. That was the first time I felt I did a mistake coming in this industry. Maybe I was too simple a person for such cheap politics.

    And then by god’s grace, that project was taken away by the client. And then the company asked everyone to either leave or go back to offshore (where the work was very less and insecure future). It was during that time that I got this present job of mine. So I happily resigned and then joined the present company.

    I enjoyed the initial 2 days of induction. Then after that I was to meet my supervisor who is also one of the directors in this company. I can never forget my first meeting with that lady. How can someone work under such a person ? It was not only demoralizing but it was a highly abusive behaviour. It was my third/fourth day in the company. You can imagine my pain. I simply did not understand if the directors feel so uncomfortable talking to people at my level, then why are we made to report to them. Can they not follow a heirarchy ?

    Then I met my supervisor who initially happened to be nice but was completely out of control of the team. He was clearly bullied by them. That make things worse for me also. The colleagues from whom I had to initially liaise for my tasks simply took advantage and told stories to this manager who slowly started loosing faith in me. I cannot tell you that this is the first company I have seen where people do not share the necessary stuff also for the other person to work. The managers are completely sitting ducks, who in most cases prefer doing the tasks on their own so as to save themselves from their team bullies. When managers are themselves not in control, how can they make sure that new team members get a nice environment. And to add to this, the Director and the Vice President simple ignore whatever is happening. It clearly appears as if they are enjoying all this. I am working here since last 15 months, and still I do not understand how this bullying (highly abusive) culture satisfies the goals from the senior management’s perspective. Most of these managers show as if they are in control of their team and they are the ones on whose order the bullies are being bullied. I guess now they do not have a choice. That is the only way left for them to work.

    But what about people like me who are on the receiving end. What should I do? Sir, please suggest something practical and effective.

    Reply ↓
  6. rddgrt

    I have been the victim of workplace bullying since last 3 years in
    Singapore. It all started in my previous company. The management asked
    me to work for multiple projects which I agreed to hoping that it will
    help regain their faith in me. But eventually it turned out nothing more
    than another ploy to get rid off me. For 2.5 years I faced that
    horrible bullying environment and then finally when that project was
    over, I got another job (my present one) in Singapore.

    But shockingly,
    this job turned out even worse. Here many colleagues of mine had good
    links/relations with my earlier company colleagues. All of them disliked
    me from day one. Initially I thought that this may be due to their
    expectations from new employees. But eventually I realized that that
    their motive was nothing but harassment and revenge. Even the senior
    management (director, VP) are also involved in this. Daily I face this
    horrible environment, and I do not know whom to approach for help.
    Because of this bullying coming from senior management, no one (at my
    level) dares to help by coming along.

    This present employer of mine is a reputed IT company based out of Singapore. And honestly, like me there are many more victims in this company. I feel more upset when I see them giving in to this bullying culture.

    What should I do ? The HR is completely ineffective because of the senior management.

    Is there any LAW against such targeted bullying in
    Singapore ?

    How to report this and to whom ? What would be the consequences thereafter ?

    Reply ↓
    1. Amit Puri – Managing Consultant, Sandbox Advisors

      Workplace bullying is often a very tough situation to handle.

      May I ask for more details on why the bullying started at your first company and why they wanted to get rid of you? Also what type of bullying are your current colleagues and senior management engaging in?

      The actions you take would depend on the specifics/severity of the situation and whether you would like to stay with this company, or move on to another one.

      You can try and influence internal and external conditions. Internal conditions would mean changes that you can make to your own behaviour and thinking, in order to improve the situation. External conditions includes things like gathering support from people in your company/family/friends and seeing what recourse you have based on company policies & regulations in Singapore.

      From what I understand, there are no laws specifically addressing workplace bullying in Singapore. So you might need to turn to civil or criminal law:
      ———————————————————————————————————————-
      Civil Claims Against the Harasser

      A victim may bring an action against his or her harasser in trespass (in the case of physical contact) or harassment (in the case of non-physical harassment).

      Civil Claims Against the Employer

      A victim may consider the following causes of action against his or her employer:
      - Employer’s duty to ensure the safety of its employees
      - Vicarious liability of harasser’s acts
      - Contractual duty

      Criminal Claims Against the Harasser: Non-Physical Acts

      S13A, Miscellaneous Offences (Public Order and Nuisance) Act

      Offence: Any person …with intent to cause harassment, alarm or distress to another person —
      - uses threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour; or
      - displays any writing, sign or other visible representation which is threatening, abusive or insulting,
      - thereby causing that person or any other person harassment, alarm or distress.
      - Punishment: fine not exceeding $5,000.
      ———————————————————————————————————————-
      That is some general information that I thought you might find useful. It is hard to give more advice without knowing specifics of the situation. In case you feel more comfortable talking over the phone, please call our office and ask for me.

      Reply ↓
      2. Amit Puri – Managing Consultant, Sandbox Advisors

        Thanks for the additional information.

        I think it would be best if we spoke to discuss possible solutions. Look forward to your call.

      3. Rddgrt

        I
        have even complained to MOM for the same. According to them there is no legislation
        on workplace bullying in Singapore. The
        Employment Act, which the Ministry of Manpower administers, could only inquire
        into disputes between an employee and employer arising from the contract of
        service between the two parties or from the provisions of the Act. The Ministry
        has no jurisdiction to intervene in any “personal dispute”, verbal
        abuses, management style/ lack of professionalism on the part of the employer
        or among colleagues.Sir, please tell me your convenient time when I can speak to you. Also please provide me your contact details.

      4. Amit Puri – Managing Consultant, Sandbox Advisors

        That’s what I thought. Civil/criminal law might be the only legal recourse.

        You could call on our board line and ask for me. Or if you send an email using the the contact form on our website, I’ll keep a lookout for it and we can schedule a time to speak.

      5. Rddgrt

        One more strange aspect to this bullying culture is the use of SPY GADGETS by the
        team members (either guys or gals) to get some proof against the rival
        team/member. The use of spy gadgets is a common trend in this company. These
        gadgets are mostly used by the long-serving employees of this company.

        Generally in a team, at the least one person definitely owns some sort of a spy gadget.
        Their strategy is to FIRST BULLY (to ANY extent possible, be it personal or
        abusive, you just cannot imagine) the rival team/person and EXCITE them to
        REACT/SAY something offensive/ridiculous. Then they RECORD this rival’s
        voice/video (ONLY WHEN the bullied team/person reacts) and present this to the
        senior people (managers/senior leads) and complain about the wrong behaviour of
        the rival team/member. Most of the managers are aware of this and they don’t
        care. But this tactic also works like a sort of blackmailing the rival team/member
        by telling them indirectly (by getting this information passed through someone
        else) so that they do not complain as they themselves may get in trouble.

        I am sure that most of these bullies are aware that there is NO legislation in
        Singapore for bullying (verbal abuses or inappropriate behaviour) and hence the
        only defence has to be from the Civil/Criminal Law. That is the reason every
        team/member is desperate to have these recordings to save from any legal
        action/consequence.

        Most of the new employees in this company are black-mailed using this bullying
        tactic. First they are bullied in a very bad way (abusive/personal, you cannot
        imagine), and then eventually their REACTION gets recorded by someone
        (generally the rival group of the team he/she has joined). Thereafter they are blackmailed
        for doing whatever the rival team/member wants, be it bullying someone else or
        working against their own team, could be anything. These senior employees
        threaten for any LEGAL consequence (in case someone complains, then their
        recording might also be used).

        And as I told earlier also, the HR, the Senior Management are aware of everything,
        yet they are completely ignorant. Many people have tried to complain in the
        past but none of them has got any support/justice from either the HR or the
        Senior Management.

        Even the Ministry of Manpower cannot do anything in this? Please tell how to get out
        of this messy situation.

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