Causes of Workplace Bullying and Harassment - Essay Example

Leadership and workplace and harassment Name Institution Date Table of Contents Running Head: LEADERSHIP AND WORKPLACE AND HARASSMENT 1 Leadership and workplace and harassment 1 Name 1 Institution 1 Date 1 LEADERSHIP AND WORKPLACE AND HARASSMENT 12 2 Table of Contents 2 Introduction 2 Literature Review 3 Analysis 4 Nature of workplace bullying and harassment 4 Causes of workplace bullying and harassment 7 Effects of workplace bullying and harassment 8 Recommendations and Conclusion 10 References 11 Introduction Workplace bullying and harassment occurs in the places of work between the employees and their superiors or among the employees themselves. There is no clear definition of workplace bullying but it is however clear that the behavior amounts to humiliation of the employees. In most of the instances it is common for the supervisors to bully the employees for the purpose of achieving certain goals. This behavior is quirt damaging as it has negative effects on the employees who are bullied (Lutgen-Sandvik, 2008). The behavior is normally repeated for the purpose of causing fear to the employees. The human resource managers should take the maters seriously as this behavior ends up reducing productivity among the employees. In some instances, it may lead to some of the employees resigning their jobs with others opting for early retirement if appropriate action is not taken to stop the behavior. The paper thus discusses in details the issues surrounding workplace bullying and harassment in relation to interviews with the staff members of Abu Dhabi Marine Operating Company. Literature Review According to Namie (2004), workplace bullying and harassment can be defined as an act of humiliation to the employees of the lower rank. The situation is almost similar to that of schools that occurs among children only that in this case it is the adults who are being humiliated. The situation is quite common in the workplace only that most of the situations go unreported. In some of the cases they are quite humiliating and have a negative impact on the employees. In most cases, workplace bullying is repeated and is done on almost a daily basis. The practice is known for causing a lot of distress and negative effects in the workplace. The workplace bullying is mainly composed of verbal abuse; offensive conducts on the employees and to some extent physical or violent conducts being unleashed on the employees. The main cause of the vices varies from one organization to the other. However, it is evident that the vice is propagated by a lack of proper structure to control it. The main effect of the vice is mainly its ability to lower the productivity of the organization (Alberts, 2008) Analysis Nature of workplace bullying and harassment The bullying and harassment of the employees takes place in various forms and nature. However all the nature of bullying has the same effect which is negative to the employees. Verbal and abuse is the most common which is mainly done by the senior employees. Since the company deals with manual operations, it is common for the employees to be harassed through verbal expressions whenever they fail to perform a certain task properly or on time. This a form of bullying plays the role of instilling fear among the employees for the purpose of ensuring that they fear the supervisors or seniors staff members in the department. During the work process it is also common for some of the supervisors and superiors to change the work tasks or make them difficult for the employees to perform. This is clearly bullying and harassment at the same time. This is mainly because the employees get humiliated by the task which may be quite demoralizing (Meares, 2004). This form of bullying is used by the superiors for the purpose of personal satisfaction or for the purpose of letting the employees know that they are powerful in the organization. This plays an important role in ensuring that the employees do not report the matter to the relevant authorities. It is for this fear that the number of cases related to bullying are not reported and thus regarded as few in the last five years. Most of the case are not reported as the employees fear for the consequences while others get humiliated enough to share the experience with anyone. Social isolation is also a form of bullying that may have negative impacts on the mental condition of the employees. Some managers do not allow the employees to socialize based on their own reasons. This causes a lot of stress to the employees and their social lives. Such cases are mainly common among the members of the different genders who are not allowed to socialize at all (Merchant, 2003). The other form of bullying that takes place in the organization mainly involves the issues regarding promotion. Some of the most experienced employees who have work for the organization for a long time fail to get a promotion. This is a form of bullying perpetrated by the management and officers in the human resource department. It ends up causing a lot of frustration to the employees and thus affecting their performance. Discrimination is also a form of bullying that some of the employees have to endure. This is mainly among the employees themselves. Some of the employees discriminate others and do not want to work with them. In some instances, the senior members of staff discriminate against other employees and thus causing a lot of humiliation to them. This generally takes place openly and most of the cases are never reported at all. This is despite the problem being repetitive and continuous. The employees may opt to adapt to the behavior of the bullies since they may have no other choices (Neuman, 2003). Some of the senior members of staff may also underestimate the competencies of the employees. Even in situations that the employees have done the right task. Their work may at times be underestimated openly and thus causing them a lot of humiliation and stress. This may occur for personal reasons or the superiors may be under pressure. On the other hand, some of the members of staff may also be forced by their superiors to approve certain issues even when they are not supposed to be approved. Thos is clearly bullying as it leads to actions that are not intended by the employees. In some instances, the decisions made by certain employees may be overruled without any proper reason. This amounts to bullying as the actions may not be justified. Some of the arrogant managers may overrule some decisions simply because they were made by their juniors. Overruling of decisions without proper reasons is a form of bullying as it is mainly aimed at belittling the employees. Personal attacks also a form of bullying that takes place I n the organization. This is sometimes done directly or indirectly. The nature of this bullying mainly revolves around the personal lives of certain individuals. The use of gossips may be an indirect form of bullying that may also cause a lot of humiliation to the employees. On the other hand the employees may be ridiculed directly based on their lifestyle. This form of bullying is mainly propagated by the supervisors on the employees since the employees have limited powers and cannot take any action against them. Some case of physical violence are also been reported. The superiors may use physical violence and threats to the employees in order to ensure that they have performed a certain task. This form of bullying may lead to injuries or a lot of fear and humiliation among the concerned employees. Overworking is also a form of bullying that has been reported by some of the employees. This is mainly perpetrated by the supervisors for their own benefits. The employees may be overworked so as to ensure a certain target is met (Namie, 2004). Causes of workplace bullying and harassment The major causes of workplace bullying by the employees ranges from various factors. The lack of clear policies on the mater is a major contributing factor to the cases of bullying. The company does not have a specific policy regarding bullying but the general policies on discipline are used to regulate the behavior. This exposes the employees to the bullying and harassment by their seniors. The level of civilization is also a cause for the bullying. This is considering that some of the supervisors and the employees in the organization are not civilized enough. Some do not view bullying as an act of humiliation but rather as a tool for ensuring that the employees perform their tasks to the required standards. This plays a big role in perpetrating the behavior and as such its continuity in the organization. Although the organization has policies regarding the bullying of employees, most of them have not read it. Thos is mainly because the information is found at the company’s website which is rarely accessed by the employees due to their tight schedule. Lack of trust is also a cause of bullying in the organization. Some of the supervisors and managers would prefer working with certain people as opposed to others. This creates an atmosphere of lack of trust when implementing the objectives of the company. Since the members cannot trust each other, then bullying and harassment is meant to create fear or an atmosphere of balance among the staff members. A huge workload is also a cause of bullying among the employees. This is mainly because the managers may want to accomplish certain tasks as scheduled and yet the time allocated to them is limited. The only way to ensure that the employees work extra hard is by bullying them. This in most instances results to employees working for long periods of time (Ginossar, 2004). Others may also end up being overworked so as to ensure that the intended target is met. This form of bullying usually goes unreported as the company is only interested in achieving its targets. Other members of staff are also insecure about their positions and thus end up bullying those below tem. Once the employees below them acquire a higher level of education and experience above them, then they become threatened by this. This causes them to bully the employees for the purpose of ensuring that they do not threaten their positions. Deficiencies in leadership behaviors are also a cause of bullying of he employees. The leadership in the company does not play an active role in ending the vice. In some instances the cases are treated casually and thus making it difficult for the employees to receive any meaningful solution to the problem (Macintosh, 2006). This is a weakness on the side of the management which exposes the employee to the bullying behaviors which goes unreported and also unpunished. Effects of workplace bullying and harassment Workplace bullying and harassment has serious repercussions on the human resource (Yamada, 2000). The vice elevates negative behaviors within the organization and thus creates a poor culture and image within the organization. This plays a role in the promotion of unfair working environment within the organization. With the poor treatment of the employees, the working situation becomes poor and thus demoralizing the employees. The workplace bullying and harassment thus contributes to reduction in productivity of the members of staff and other employees. This results to reduced profits within the organization and hence reducing the growth rate. Some of the employees have left the company due to the vice. This situation is costly to the organization considering that some of the employees are highly experienced. Replacing the employees takes a lot of time and thus wastage of productive time. Some of the employees have also been trained by the organization and the company stands to loose if they leave the organization. The workplace bullying and harassment therefore has serious consequences for the organization. Cases of early retirement have also been reported in the organization. One of the main causes of early retirement is harassment. The employees who retire early may move to other organizations which rivals the organization and thus causing loses to the company due to competition. Employee loyalty is very important within the organization. However, with workplace bullying and harassment, the loyalty of the employees is lost completely. This affects the performance of the employees which may result to losses for the organization. Depression and stress I also an effect of workplace bullying. This greatly affects the employee’s lives and also their performance. Once the employees are stresses, their performance reduces and thus leading to loses for the company due to low productivity. In some in stances, the employees have quit their jobs due to the problem (Einarsen, 2003). Recommendations and Conclusion It is recommended that the human resource manager takes appropriate measures to ensure that the vice is put under control. This can only be achieved by preparing proper and clear guidelines regarding the issue. Clear policies should be drafted to ensure that the perpetrators of the act are accountable and action taken against them. The human resource managers should also conduct seminars and training to the employees concerning the mater. This will play an important role in ensuring that the employees are enlightened about their rights and report any incidences of being harassed or bullied by the superiors or other employees. Stern action should also be taken against the perpetrators for the purpose of ensuring the vice is eliminated. In conclusion, it is evident that the vice has more negative impacts on the employees as well as the organizations. The vice leads to reduced productivity among the employees which in turn is a loss to the company. The vice also has a direct effect on the health status of the employees which is mainly stress and depression. It is thus important to ensure that the vice is completely eliminated from the workplace. References Lutgen-Sandvik, P. (2008). Intensive remedial identity work: Responses to workplace bullying trauma and stigma. Organization, 15(1), 97-119. Alberts, J. et al (2008). The communicative nature of workplace bullying and responses to bullying. Paper presented at the Western States Communication Association Annual Convention, Denver/Boulder, CO. Meares, M. (2004). Employee mistreatment and muted voices in the culturally diverse workforce. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 32(1), 4-27. Merchant, V. et al (2003). Investigating complaints of bullying. In S. Einarsen, H. Hoel, D. Zapf & C. L. Cooper (Eds.), Bullying and emotional abuse in the workplace: International perspectives in research and practice. (pp. 259-269). London: Taylor & Francis. Neuman, J. et al (2003). Social antecedents of bullying: A social interactionist perspective. In S. Einarsen, H. Hoel, D. Zapf & C. L. perspectives in research and practice (pp. 185-202). London: Francis & Taylor. Namie, G. (2004). Workplace bullying: How to address America's silent epidemic. Employee Rights and Employment Policy Journal, 8(2), 315-333. Ginossar, T. et al (2004). Employee mistreatment and muted voices in the culturally diverse workforce. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 32(1), 4-27. Macintosh, J. (2006). Tackling workplace bullying. Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 27(6), 665-679. Yamada, D. (2000). The phenomenon of "workplace bullying" and the need for status-blind hostile work environment protection. Georgetown Law Journal, 88(3), 475-536. Einarsen, S. et al (2003). Individual antecedents of bullying. Bullying and emotional abuse in the workplace: International perspectives in research and practice (pp. 165-184). London: Taylor & Francis. Read More