Workers who witness bullying, not just those who are bullied, are likely to develop a negative view of their workplace, according to a new study.
Research at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, determined that those who see colleagues bullied on the job are significantly more likely to express a desire to leave and work elsewhere. Some research suggests that as many as 70 percent of workers may have seen others bullied in the office, according to Human Resource Executive Online. This can weaken employee loyalty and poison team relationships, creating an atmosphere that is not conducive to collaboration.
Managers and supervisors should ensure that they create an environment where employees feel they can discuss any incidents they witness and in which what they say can remain confidential. Without such an atmosphere, employees are likely to experience falling morale and trust can deteriorate.
Employees who are bullied may try to ignore the problem, confront the individual responsible or appease them. In any case, productivity can be hindered and the organization's ability to operate may be decreased in several ways. If they feel they can appeal to their boss in the event of a problem, many issues can be avoided.
Dealing with bullying
One mistake that human resource managers or supervisors sometimes make is approaching bullying from a mental health standpoint. Attempting to adopt the role of a counselor can be problematic, and such work should generally be performed by a specialist rather than a manager, expert Ken Zuckerberg told the news source. When individuals move beyond their role in an HR management system, situations may become more complicated. Instead, he recommended that organizations deal with the problem from a performance management perspective.
The most damaging case occurs when bullying is performed by a manager or supervisor. In that case, HR personnel must be able to take the issue to the appropriate level on behalf of employees, or workers must have some recourse or procedure available. If a perception of unfairness or powerlessness spreads among employees, their attitudes are likely to worsen quickly.
These concerns apply in other respects as well. While bullying is a serious problem, other situations that cause people to feel that their concerns are ignored or that they cannot do anything about problems they face may have the same effect, causing them to doubt the organization and themselves.
