Leadership - Effectively Dealing With Workplace Bullying and Harassment

Any And All Work Place Bullying And Harassment Is Unacceptable!

People have a right to go to work and feel safe, respected and valued. Any and all work place bullying and harassment is unacceptable! All members of senior leadership and management have a duty of care for their staff and are completely responsible for ensuring that socially unacceptable behaviour is not tolerated.

Let’s first define the difference between workplace bullying v’s work place harassment?

The terms "bullying" and "harassment" are often misunderstood and can be wrongly identified and attributed to negative and antisocial behaviours in the workplace.

They do however have two distinct and defined meanings with different implications under the law and in workplace policies.

Workplace Bullying Defined:

Workplace bullying can be defined as negative behaviour(s) and/or action(s) directed towards an employee(s), colleague or boss. This can be one experience or indeed a more systematic set of experiences.

Examples can include: Intimidating behaviour, undermining a person personally or professionally, to act in a demeaning or disrespectful way towards an individual based on their professional capability or competence. This could also include voicing negative opinions or having bias based on their own personal beliefs, nature or character. This also includes setting them up too fail by creating unrealistic deadlines or giving them tasks that they are not experienced enough to complete successfully or imposing constraints and restrictions that differ to others in a similar role, etc.

NOTE: It’s important to note that bullying is not necessarily illegal for the most part, unless it crosses the line and can begin to be defined as actual harassment covered by law.

Bullying can be subtle and difficult to pin down legally because of what is called ‘plausible deniability’, where people claim they have been misunderstood or taken out of context and they didn’t mean anything by it. The old “It was just banter!” Can be a common excuse. Banter is only banter if everyone recognises and accepts it as banter, the problem is one day one of these people might be for whatever reason, hurt or offended and suddenly no longer seeing it or experiencing it as banter. THEY ARE NOT, being touchy, overly sensitive or lacking a sense of humour. How they feel is valid and is important!

Workplace Harassment Defined:

Workplace Harassment however can become illegal when the person enduring the offensive conduct becomes at risk of loosing their job directly or indirectly. Or when the inappropriate conduct is severe or pervasive enough to create a work environment that any reasonable person would consider intimidating, hostile, or abusive. The criteria is well documented with the legally defined categories. These are laid out in 3 main categories in the Equality Act 2010.

Disclaimer, Please Note: Although highly experienced in effective conflict resolution, I am not a lawyer, and the way that these principles are explained and laid out on this page, should be viewed as merely the opinion of the author and page owner. If you feel that some of the points expressed do currently exists within your organisation you should seek qualified legal advice.

The 3 main categories that define harassment are…

Harassment Relating To Protected Characteristics - These include ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, religious beliefs and affiliations.

Sexual Harassment - In all of it’s forms, this can include, sexual innuendo, inappropriate jokes, physical touching, any form of unwanted or inappropriate sexually motivated attention and conduct. Also the age old leveraging of position or power to attain sexual favours.

Unfair Treatment, Limiting Or Restricting Opportunity - This can be based on a person in authority just not liking or rating someone because of their own personal opinion (hard to prove). It can also be directly attributed to a more blatant discrimination of ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, religious beliefs and other affiliations etc.

Action Or Inaction?

Bullying and harassment if not dealt with early enough or effectively enough can have a massive negative impact on the work environment and overall culture. It can undermine trust, damage morale, impact talent retention and reduce productivity.

Strong effective leadership will have clearly defined workplace policies and HR processes in place that are aligned to early detection and awareness. This structure will go a long way to help manage and mitigate these possible negative impacts.

Here are Some fundamental Keys to recognising and mitigating workplace bullying and harassment, they are…..

Awareness - Recognising The Signs

Repeated Undermining Behaviour: Bullying often involves repeated incidents aimed at degrading, humiliating, or ostracising an individual or group of individuals. When we recognise and document cycles we are more likely to take away any doubt, along with removing the opportunity for ‘plausible deniability’ to be used as an excuse. Abusers on the surface of it, may seem very clever, their behaviour can be subtle and skirt close to the line! They need to know, that we know, and they also need to know that there are consequences and actions will be taken.

Intimidation, Physical Or Verbal: This can come in many forms, we must first acknowledge the intimidation based on the fact that someone has felt intimidated. Threats can be physical, mental or emotional. Tone is very important, some communication can be perceived as aggressive. Also overly harsh criticism aligned to inappropriate consequences can be construed as intimidation. Process is process, there is something wrong if it is perceived as a threat.

Sabotage, Setting Others Up To Fail: Every member of staff in every role must act in a way that honours and supports the business. Cliques and mini fiefdoms, where one department is allowed to play of against an other department is very much a form of sabotage. Interfering with an individual or a rival departments ability to work effectively, such as withholding necessary information, purposely giving incorrect instructions or directions, or setting impossible deadlines, is very dangerous to the stability of the organisation as a whole.

Exclusion: Deliberately excluding someone from meetings, conversations, or social events that are relevant to their work and their position within the business. People are not stupid, the mistake that bullies make, is they generally think that they’re being cleverer than everyone else. Rarely is that truly the case, because of their rather obvious patterns. If you are aware of something, then rest assured so will the rest of the staff, nothing undermines a persons position or authority more than unjustifiable exclusion.

Public Humiliation: Criticising, mocking, undermining, reprimanding or disciplining someone in public, especially in front of customers, peers or subordinates is bullying. It is not professional, it is not respectful and will break down rapport and respect in all that have to endure it or indeed witness it.

Physical Abuse: While less common, physical intimidation, threats of violence or actual assault are an incredibly severe form of bullying. Actions of this sort can easily fall into the realms of common assault. The courts here in the UK tend to view verbal abuse as the same as physical abuse. This can very easily go beyond HR processes and will likely be a matter for the police to deal with.

Verbal Or Written Abuse: A persons written and verbal communication is either professional and respectful, or it is not. Harsh comments, ridicule, offensive language or overt threats and indeed implied covert threats of any kind (this could be implied disciplinary action outwith either their role or HR defined processes) either in spoken or written form, including emails and texts is unacceptable and is bullying. People should choose wisely what they say and should choose even more wisely what they write! An email written in anger can become a very career limiting action.

Leadership's Role in Mitigating Workplace Bullying And Harassment

The Policies, Processes And Actions

1. Setting Clear Guidelines And Policies

A Zero Tolerance Policy: Establish, communicate and most importantly of all police and enforce a clear policy that defines bullying and also defines harassment. This policy should also clearly state what is professionally expected and what will NOT be tolerated. This is a, one rule for all policy. It must be fair and applied across the board. If at any stage it is seen to be in certain circumstance or in relation to certain people or roles not applied or followed through on, it will set a precedence and become redundant and unenforceable.

Effective, Safe, Reliable Reporting Mechanisms: For people to speak up they must feel safe and they must have confidence in being heard and that there will be something done about it. Creating clearly defined safe and confidential ways for employees to report bullying without fear of retaliation is more difficult in real world terms than just documenting policy. All to often individuals will not speak up, and the bully will also rely upon others being complicit and turning a blind eye. If it is happening then management should be engage enough to have an awareness of it. It is far more effective for management to notice a problem and open up dialogue directly with the individual than to just rely upon the those who are victims to come forward to speak up. We must live the policy from the top down and demonstrate our zero tolerance through actions so as to build trust.

2. Education: Advanced Sensory Awareness Training

Responsibility And Accountability Awareness Training: Because some aspects of bullying and harassment can be either subtle, highly complex or a bit ambiguous in nature. There are many situations where a persons communication style can come across as intimidating without them realising it. We have all at some stage or another been misunderstood or been taken in the wrong way. This can easily happen if the person is highly emotional or passionate about certain things. Therefore it stands to reason that everyone would benefit from being trained in tools and techniques that would allow them an awareness of possible unconscious bias, or emotional charge that may negatively influence their approach, their tone and the words they choose to use in their interactions. If you know you are doing it, then you are more likely to be able to control it, and ultimately empowered to choose to do it differently.

Personal Boundary Awareness Training: Each individual will have their own personal boundaries and values as to what is right and what is not. Training up staff with the skills that will empower them to know their own personal boundaries and expectations is a very good start. Also having the skills to be able to test honestly and accurately outside of self when they feel these boundaries are being violated, helps to stop the risk of second guessing or doubting themselves. This helps eliminate all of the unnecessary shades of grey that make recognising and reporting bullying such a difficult moving target.

Observer Awareness Training: Teach employees how to recognise unacceptable behaviour in their colleagues, subordinates and bosses. Also clearly define their responsibility to either safely intervene if appropriate, along with how they can go about doing that, without putting themselves at risk either physically or from a policy violation perspective themselves. Also empower them to report any and all incidents that should be escalated to the appropriate person/authority who can do something about resolving it.

Management Training On How To Deal With Bullying: Most managers are very nice people and by that very nature can be a bit reluctant or indeed down right avoidant when it comes to dealing with difficult, awkward or conflict driven situations. Some managers simply do not have the necessary, experience, skills, temperament, or perhaps confidence to tackle difficult conversations and disciplinary procedures. True leadership is all about being confident, capable and willing, to deal directly with all aspects of unacceptable behaviour and or underperformance.

3. Responsive Timely Action

Investigate And Collate The Facts: Ensure that all the facts that support the claims are investigated promptly, accurately and impartially by a suitable member of senior management or HR. The key to being able to resolve a problem is to accurately understand the important details that make up the problem. Advanced listening and questioning skills are critically important for this part of the process to be done correctly, so that it mitigates the risk of assumptions, installation or unconscious bias skewing the outcome. The three F's, firm, fair and factual is key.

Practical And Emotional Support Systems: It is important that people feel safe, heard and supported. Where required, and or requested, there should be qualified support for the victims of bullying and harassment. This can take the form of in-house coaching by a suitably qualified member of staff or external counselling, if more contextually appropriate. This is not a nice to have, box ticking exercise! Whatever support system that is in place it must be monitored and followed up on to ensure it is worthwhile and delivering a positive result.

4. Leading by Example

Modelling Excellence: The very best way to ensure trust and entrench positive cultural change is to live the ethos from the top down. All senior leadership and management are responsible for living and breathing the respect and professional integrity that is expected from all others. People can say whatever they like and it may well sound all very lovely, but we calibrate on behaviour and there is no more powerful message than to actively and consistently demonstrate this by being and doing.

Transparency and Accountability: If your guidelines and policies are clear and well documented then it is now simply process. All leaders and managers within the organisation are fully accountable and responsible for the consistent and fair implementation of these policies. Transparency around the process with the clearly defined disciplinary steps that will be taken when dealing with bullying and ensuring all perpetrators are held accountable. Everyone should be on the same page, with the same expectations, there should be of no surprises for anyone.

Creating And Maintaining A Culture Of Respect And Inclusivity

By investing in these principles and processes, leadership can create a workplace environment that supports a culture of respect and inclusivity. Where it is understood and accepted that any form of bullying or harassment either overt or covert will not be tolerated at any level.

Our desired culture, productivity and talent retention will be born out of the structure, processes, actions and behaviours that we stand for and live by. Hold yourself to a higher standard and embody the ethos that the culture that you want, is to be build on.

To find out more about how our leadership coaching programs, management trainings and advanced communication skills courses can help your business, simply email me directly on [email protected] to arrange a call.

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