So that’s Bullying?

Bullying can happen in workplaces as well as in schools. Unlike a child bully, an adult may use more subtle strategies to produce negative psychological effects. Help for employees begins with awareness of bullying behaviors. The appropriate type of support or intervention can then be determined. Common, but often subtle, examples of bullying:

1) a pattern of statements meant to degrade an individual's work status or personal standing;

2) isolating a worker to prevent access to information, opportunities, and social interaction within the organization;

3) undermining the individual by demeaning his or her standard of work, not giving credit, setting up projects to fail;

4) persistently reminding the person of his or her mistakes.

Perhaps you recognize some of your own behaviors in these examples or feel that these behaviors occur in your work group. Your supervisor and human resources staff can help you address these workplace problems. The EAP can also help you understand these behaviors in yourself and cope with these behaviors in others.