Workplace bullying isn’t exactly a new problem, but it is one which has grown significantly in recent years, and particularly since the start of the current recession. In fact, so severe had the impact of the world’s economic crisis been by June 2010, that this was one of the issues addressed by the seventh international conference on workplace bullying and harassment which took place in Cardiff, Wales during the early part of that month.
Bullying, of course, can take place at any level within an organization, from senior leadership down, but the perpetrators aren’t necessarily single individuals and they don’t even necessarily come from within the victims’ own employing companies. Not only this, but bullying behavior can also take different forms, some of which might not be easily recognized by those on the receiving end. Here, therefore, I intend to look at some of the different types of bullying and how bullying behavior manifests itself, because of course without recognizing the behaviour in the first place, victims are helpless to do anything about it.
Pressure Bullying – Pressure bullying is probably one of the most common types, but because it is perpetrated unintentionally, in the heat of the moment and by most people from time to time, many don’t regard it as bullying as such. Generally it manifests itself when people are under a considerable amount of stress, usually in the form of shouting or swearing at others. Unlike other forms of bullying, pressure bullying is characterized by the fact that when the source of stress is removed and things return to normal, the individual is quick to realize that his or her behavior was inappropriate and quick to apologize.
Serial Bullying – Serial bullying can always be traced back to a single individual whose behavior, as the name suggests, is characterized by bullying one person until he or she is totally defeated, before moving on to another. Serial bullies typically have a strong desire to control and display strong signs of arrogance, but often they come across as having split personalities, behaving charmingly towards witnesses, but viciously towards their victims. Often they are masters of deception and manipulation.
Pair Bullying – Pair bullying is perpetrated by two individuals, one of whom usually does all the talking while the other looks on. Although it can be easy to assume that the more active one of the two is the serial bully, often the reverse is also true.
Gang Bullying – Instead of a serial bully being supported by just a single colleague as is the case with pair bullying, in gang bullying he or she is backed up by an entire gang. Some of the gang take part in the bullying of others because of the sense of power and control that it gives them, while others are themselves pressurized into becoming involved. As with pair bullying, it isn’t necessarily the most vociferous members of the gang who are at the root of the problem.
Corporate Bullying – Corporate bullying basically occurs when organizations abuse their workers by, for example, pressurizing them to work unreasonable numbers of hours, encouraging them to make up complaints about their colleagues in order to aid dismissals, spying on them, or treating them cruelly or unfairly, when they suffer illness or the effects of stress. Employers often get away with corporate bullying because they know that the law can do little to touch them and that workers are unlikely to retaliate for fear of losing their jobs.
Cyber Bullying – Although it is common to think of bullying behavior taking place in face-to-face situations, of course this isn’t always the case and modern technology has made it much easier for serial bullies to threaten and victimize others from behind the safety of their computer screens. While e-mail is one of the favorite forms of cyber bullying, all types of Internet forums are used to post inflammatory content which is designed to cause humiliation, upset and conflict.
Client Bullying – Leaders, managers, colleagues and co-workers aren’t the only ones who are guilty of bullying behavior, which is also often displayed by clients, customers, students and patients and sometimes even the relatives of these individuals for example. Client bullying typically manifests itself in the form of verbal or even physical abuse.
As I mentioned earlier, the tactics that bullies use are wide-ranging and often their behaviors aren’t even regarded by many as bullying. Just to give an idea of what the Workplace Bullying Institute regards as bullying behavior though, here are the top 25 tactics adopted by all bullies which were identified in their Report on Abusive Workplaces:
- Falsely accused someone of ‘errors’ not actually made (71%)
- Stared, glared, was nonverbally intimidating and was clearly showing hostility (68%)
- Discounted the person’s thoughts or feelings (‘Oh, that’s silly’) in meetings (64%)
- Used the ‘silent treatment’ to ‘ice out’ and separate from others (64%)
- Exhibited presumably uncontrollable mood swings in front of the group (61%)
- Made up own rules on the fly that even she/he did not follow (61%)
- Disregarded satisfactory or exemplary quality of completed work despite evidence (58%)
- Harshly and constantly criticized having a different ‘standard’ for the Target (57%)
- Started, or failed to stop, destructive rumors or gossip about the person (56%)
- Encouraged people to turn against the person being tormented (55%)
- Singled out and isolated one person from co-workers, either socially or physically (54%)
- Publicly displayed ‘gross’, undignified, but not illegal behaviour (53%)
- Yelled, screamed, threw tantrums in front of others to humiliate a person (53%)
- Stole credit for work done by others (47%)
- Abused the evaluation process by lying about the person’s performance (46%)
- ‘Insubordinate’ for failing to follow arbitrary commands (46%)
- Used confidential information about a person to humiliate privately or publicly (45%)
- Retaliated against the person after a complaint was filed (45%)
- Made verbal put-downs/insults based on gender, race, accent or language, disability (44%)
- Assigned undesirable work as punishment (44%)
- Made undoable demands – workload, deadlines, duties – for person singled out (44%)
- Launched a baseless campaign to oust the person and not stopped by the employer (43%)
- Encouraged the person to quit or transfer rather than to face more mistreatment (43%)
- Sabotaged the person’s contribution to a team goal and reward (41%)
- Ensured failure of person’s project by not performing required tasks: signoffs, taking calls, working with collaborators (40%)
I m feeling your pain too. It is so hard for me to get out of my current workplace when the new potential employers do not buy my story that I got bullied. I suffered from sleepless nights and I find it so hard to move on and prove myself. I m not sure if getting testimonials or good referrals from colleagues can help. Those who are willing to help of course
I hope things get better for you soon and you figure out how to deal with your workplace bullying situation.
Please feel free to give us a call, if you’d like to talk and get some general advice
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.
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 (not because they wanted it). 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.
This bullying culture is highly abusive in nature, and
most of the victims are not only abused personally, but they are literally
tortured mentally. And to add to their pain, this bullying is being completely
backed by the HR and the Senior/Middle Management. Those who ignore or support
this bullying culture are allowed to work by this management. All those who
show signs of discomfort or talk against this bullying culture are made
bullying victims immediately.
And above all, this Director, her Vice President (whom
she reports) and other Senior Management people (who are sitting close to their
large teams) 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.
This company certainly has the worst HR department
possible. Here only the management dictates terms. And to add to the dismay,
some of the HR people themselves are being bullied badly by the foot lickers of
this Senior Management. Seeing all this, how can someone approach these HR guys
for help and on what basis (when they are themselves ignorant of this bullying
culture)?
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. Is
this the true face of today’s job industry in Singapore?
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.
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.
Please suggest something
practical and effective.
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 (not because they wanted it). 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.
This bullying culture is highly abusive in nature, and
most of the victims are not only abused personally, but they are literally tortured
mentally. And to add to their pain, this bullying is being completely backed by
the HR and the Senior/Middle Management. Those who ignore or support this
bullying culture are allowed to work by this management. All those who show signs
of discomfort or talk against this bullying culture are made bullying victims
immediately.
And above all, this Director, her Vice President (whom
she reports) and other Senior Management people (who are sitting close to their
large teams) 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.
This company certainly has the worst HR department
possible. Here only the management dictates terms. And to add to the dismay,
some of the HR people themselves are being bullied badly by the foot lickers of
this Senior Management. Seeing all this, how can someone approach these HR guys
for help and on what basis (when they are themselves ignorant of this bullying
culture)?
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 (employment/criminal) against such targeted
bullying in Singapore? Or is this the true face of today’s job industry in
Singapore?
Please suggest something practical and effective.
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.