Infographic: How to Deal With a Workplace Bully

Bullying in the workplace is a serious issue that needs to be dealt with effectively. It can have a significant impact on a victim’s health and wellbeing, and company working culture. Toxic behaviour at work can manifest itself in various ways, from gossip and social exclusion, to sabotage, intimidation, and violence, as well as unreasonable deadlines and institutional demands.

Fortunately, there is some clear practical advice on how victims, witnesses, and managers can deal with bully-behaviour.

Victims:

An important thing to remember if you are bullied, is not to suffer in silence. The additional stress caused by enduring bullying over extended periods of time can wear down your confidence and resilience, and make you more vulnerable to victimisation in future.

In many cases, a bully is more likely to back down when they are called out on their behaviour early on. It helps to talk about your situation through with someone you trust – a friend or therapist, perhaps – and make sure that your boss, or HR manager, is aware of things. Keep a record of dates, times, and details of any incidences of bullying, and hold onto emails or paperwork that could provide evidence should you need to take matters further, which might include seeking legal advice.

Witnesses:

If you become aware that someone is being bullied, help shift the power dynamic by intervening and calling out unacceptable behaviour. Be an ally to the victim. Report upwards, as necessary, and be prepared to explain what you have seen. Take action to establish and maintain a positive, supportive working culture, where people feel safe, and bullying cannot thrive.

Managers:

As a Manager, you have a responsibility to nip bullying or toxic behaviour in the bud before it escalates further. Start by meeting with the person who has been accused of bullying. This meeting should be well documented, with an HR representative present.

Make sure that you have a clear and up to date bullying and harassment policy, and provide guidance to employees about the expectations, and consequences of non-compliance with, this policy. Take action to encourage a healthy and positive work culture. Employees need to feel safe and comfortable to go about their work without fear of harassment. Any stress factors that result from, or give rise to, bullying, need to be addressed.

The career and resume experts at Resume.io have gathered information about bullying in the workplace to put together an accessible guide for how to address bullying issues effectively.
Take a look at this infographic guide to find out more.

Read: 9 Ways To Stop A Workplace Bully