Solve bullying in workplace in four steps

When people hear „bullying“, they usually think of school. Unfortunately, bullying takes place in workplace too. According to surveys, up to one fifth of Czech employees encountered bullying at work. The prevention, detection and handling of bullying is one of the key tasks of any manager. In our article today we will show you how you can solve bullying at workplace in four steps if it appears in your team.

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Identify the participants

According to Forbes there are several types of bullying. An employee can be terrorized not only by their boss, but also by their peer, a group or even their subordinate. Map the situation in cooperation with the victim and find out who all the participants are and above all who the aggressor is. Solve the problem as a whole, not just its parts.

Talk to the aggressor

Confront the aggressor that is actively involved in the bullying. Find out if they are aware of their behavior – sometimes they don't know how the victim actually feels. In this case the situation can be solved quite easily. If the perpetrator is aware of their behavior and they deliberately attack the victim, explain to them very clearly exactly what you want, what makes the situation unacceptable and what types of behavior you will not tolerate.

Talk to the HR department or the top management

If the situation does require intervention, you can bring the matter to top management or the HR department. HR specialists usually have tools to deal with this kind of situation. Do not take bullying lightly, especially if it takes place in your team, and talk to top management if you are not able to deal with the situation on your own.

Monitor the situation afterwards

Even if you manage to solve the situation, it is never solved for good. Monitor the situation and make sure the aggressor does not carry on  bullying, and that they did not simply choose another victim.

 

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Article source Forbes.com - prestigious American business magazine and website
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