The Realities of Adult Bullying which Happens in the Workplace

by Dec 16, 2015

There’s an interesting report at Yahoo!Health which made mention of adult bullying, its realities and how GOP candidate Donald Trump and his social media tirades against other people.  One of the latest is Trump’s Twitter posts criticizing Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly.  The report cited how many people compared Trump’s behavior to that of a school bully all throughout his presidential campaign.

While most people would think that bullies are only present in at school or a playground, the harsh reality is it exists even in the workplace.  Adult bullying or workplace bullying has become prevalent over the years.  It can happen in any industry or profession.  Employees who experienced being bullied at work would find themselves under constant attack from an abusive boss or co-worker.  The attack need not be physical.  More often than not, it involves the use of highly critical words and even subtle actions which sometimes makes it difficult to assess whether a situation would fall under the category of workplace bullying.  It also makes it even harder to prove, on the part of the victim, that he or she was targeted by a workplace bully.

But going back to the Yahoo! report, it pointed out that while Trump and Kelly are not co-workers, they do have a professional relationship.  That is of a reporter and candidate or a journalist and subject.  Trump’s social media posts may seem scathing for some, however, other people may view it as an aggressive action that is reminiscent of a bully.

 

Click here to read the full article.

Do you know how much money chronically bad behavior costs your company? Spoiler alert – it’s a LOT higher than you want it to be. Download our data and worksheet to see how it’s costing your organization and what you can do to fix it.

 

Catherine

About Catherine Mattice

Catherine Mattice, MA, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, is the founder/CEO of Civility Partners, an organizational development firm focused on helping organizations create respectful workplace cultures and specializing in turning around toxic cultures. Civility Partners’ clients range from Fortune 500’s to small businesses across many industries. Catherine is a TEDx speaker and an HR thought-leader who has appeared in such venues as USA Today, Bloomberg, CNN, NPR, and many other national news outlets as an expert. She’s an award-winning speaker, author and blogger, and has 50+ courses reaching global audiences on LinkedIn Learning. Catherine’s award-winning book, BACK OFF! Your Kick-Ass Guide to Ending Bullying at Work, was hailed by international leadership-guru, Ken Blanchard, as, “the most comprehensive and valuable handbook on the topic.” Her latest book is Navigating Toxic Work Environments For Dummies (Wiley).

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