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BULLYING, HARRASSMENT & OVERWORKING

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GENERAL BULLYING IN THE WORKPLACE

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WHAT IS BULLYING?

According to www.workplacebullying.org the website of the Workplace Bullying Institute bullying is a, “mistreatment severe enough to compromise a targeted worker's health, jeopardize her or his job and career, and strain relationships with friends and family. It begins with one person singling out the target. Before long, the bully easily and swiftly recruits others to gang up on the target, which increases the sense of isolation.”

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DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BULLYING AND HARASSMENT

Workplacebullying.org also notes that bullying seems like harassment but it is not.

“Harassment is defined as systematic, annoying, and continued actions which include threats and demands; creating a hostile situation by uninvited and unwelcome verbal or physical conduct. Mostly associated with sexual misconduct and hostile work environment.”

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LAWS AGAINST BULLYING IN WORKPLACE?

Bullying is legal in every state. But the Workplace Bullying Institute notes

that there are over 20 states which have introduced some version of their anti-bullying legislation, called The Healthy Workplace Bill. Its current status can be found at the Healthy Workplace Campaign website.

Laws need to be implemented as this is a serious issue that affects mental health.

You can always sue if you feel your mental health is being dramatically affected.

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BULLYING IN THE WORKPLACE NEW FIELD BEING STUDIED

From the scholarly article 20 Years of workplace bullying research: A review of the antecedents and consequences of bullying in the workplace bullying in the workplace is emerging as an important area of research in the field of management studies. Some studies have revealed that nearly 95% of employees have experienced general bullying throughout the workplace. Bullying in the workplace entails significant consequences across various levels such as individual, group, and organizational.

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In the article Ten signs your being bullied at work from forbes.com written by Allison Dusen in the 2007 Zogby International survey 37% of workers or rather 54 million people have been bullied in the office and have been repeatedly mistreated in a way that is harming of his or her health. The percentage of this survey balloons to 49% of workers which is a total of 71.5 million people, witnesses were included in this number as well.

BULLYING IN THE WORKPLACE

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BULLYING CAUSES STRESS Dusen also notes that the Zogby survey noted in the

Forbes.com article about 45% of individuals who are targeted by bullies in the workplace suffer from stress-related health problems Such as

Cardiovascular problems Impaired immune system Debilitating anxiety Post-traumatic stress disorder

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THE EFFECTS OF BULLYING IN AN ORGANIZATION

According to Dusen Workplace bullying hard to measure

Bullies can hurt an organization’s credibility and reputation

Bullies make organizations look unprofessional

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TEN SIGNS YOUR BEING BULLIED 1. You feel like throwing up the night before, or you feel anxious in general.

Bullying makes you physically ill 2. You have constant criticism that doesn’t stop3. You are frequently screamed at or humiliated 4. If a boss or co-worker keeps reminding you of past mistakes but doesn’t

have any criticism to go with it is a form of bullying not constructive criticism

5. Gossip and lies 6. You’re not invited to lunch or meetings on purpose 7. You feel like you need a mental health day because of work 8. Sabotage is a form of bullying and is when a workplace member will try

ways to get you into trouble or fired 9. A Workplace bully won’t hesitate to change your schedule and make your

life more hectic 10. Your co-worker or boss steals credit for your own work

 Noted From Dusen’s Article

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BULLYING IN ACTION https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=Fy3rjQGc6lA

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GROUP DISCUSSION:WHAT WOULD YOU DO?

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SCENARIO ONE

Overall bullying: Larry has a speech impediment. He is being made fun of by his boss constantly and in front of his co-workers, who say nothing. Larry is becoming emotionally depressed from this and is dreading work. What is wrong with this situation and what can be done?

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SCENARIO TWO

Internship: There is a new intern who is not paid and is commuting into the city everyday from the suburbs. Her boss tells her to walk seven blocks to get balloons for a baby shower, and says to her it isn’t that far away, when in reality it is. The boss also makes the intern hang her coats and makes her get her coffee everyday. What is wrong and what should be done?

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SCENARIO THREE

Sexual Harassment: A woman who works in the office is often stared by men who stand at the water cooler they always stare at her, as she walks by, sometimes they even whistle and cat call at her. A female co-worker also over hears them one day say she looks fine. One day a man approaches the female co-worker and says an innuendo. What is wrong with this situation and what needs to be done?

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SCENARIO FOUR

Gender: A woman who is pregnant is being deemed unworthy to work at her company as she is pregnant and can’t do anything as she is hormonal and has to pee a lot. Co-workers are even telling her she should rest up. They are hoping she goes on maternity leave sooner then she should. What is wrong with this situation and what should be done?

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GOSSIPING & INTERNSHIPS

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“Bullying at work means harassing, offending, socially excluding someone or negatively affecting

someone's work tasks. In order for the label bullying (or mobbing) to be applied to a particular activity, interaction or process it has to occur repeatedly and regularly (e.g.

weekly) and over a period of time (e.g. about six months). Bullying is an escalated process in the course of which the

person confronted ends up in an inferior position and becomes the target of systematic negative social acts

(Einarsen, Hoel, Zapf, & Cooper, 2003, p. 15).”

Samnani, A., & Singh, P. (2012). 20 Years of workplace bullying research: A review of the antecedents and

consequences of bullying in the workplace. Aggression & Violent Behavior, 17(6), 581-589.

doi:10.1016/j.avb.2012.08.004

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STATISTICS Targets for bullying are normally employees with low

levels of self-esteem have because of their lack of confidence.

Hispanics/Latinos experienced higher rates of bullying than other races

Males are typically bullied by other males, while females tend to be bullied by both males and females, but more often by females

Older employees are more likely to be bullied than younger employees

Employees with high strain jobs are more likely to engage in bullying behaviors

Samnani, A., & Singh, P. (2012). 20 Years of workplace bullying

research: A review of the antecedents and consequences of bullying in the

workplace. Aggression & Violent Behavior, 17(6), 581-589.

doi:10.1016/j.avb.2012.08.004

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GOSSIP AS A FORM OF BULLYING IN THE WORKFORCE

GOSSIP HURTS, STAY AWAY FROM IT! Gossiping in the workplace replaces time that can

be used productively Most likely to destroy a good-working relationship or

friendship It is important to maintain confidentiality when

someone tells you something private Can separate an employee team and people can

lose trust in you

http://www.arkacomm.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=29&Itemid=21

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WHEN THE BOSS IS THE CULPRIT

When the boss starts the gossip, he/she can become a bad role model

Employees take the direction of the boss to gain favoritism

http://www.arkacomm.ca/index.php?

option=com_content&view=article&id=29&Itemid=21

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WAYS TO DEAL WITH GOSSIP IN THE WORKPLACE

Create get-together sessions to discuss issues against each other

Allow open communication in the workplace Identify who starts gossip in the office

http://edu.udym.com/bullying-and-gossip-at-the-workplace/

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INTERNSHIP BULLYING

Six criteria to determine when an internship is exempt from wage employment laws:1) Internship is similar to training that would be given in

an educational environment2) Internship is to benefit the intern3) Intern is to be supervised or mentored by staff; the

intern should not work to displace an existing employee4) Intern’s employer derives no benefit from the internship5) No entitlement to a job after the internship6) Both the intern and employer understand that the

internship is unpaid

http://msn.careerbuilder.com/Article/MSN-3182-College-Internships-First-Jobs-Interns-Know your employment-rights-and-how-to-protect-them/

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PREVALENCE OF UNPAID INTERNSHIPS

Participating in an unpaid internship is a choice based on a student’s financial situation

Unpaid internships institutionalize socioeconomic disparities beyond college

http://www.epi.org/publication/pm160/

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THE REPLACEMENT OF REGULAR WORKERS WITH INTERNS

Employers sometimes replace regular workers with unpaid interns

Brings disadvantages to both workers and college students

http://www.epi.org/publication/pm160/

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DEVIL WEARS PRADA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCJnRkyCnVw&feature=related

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LACK OF LEGAL PROTECTIONS FOR INTERNS

Current court rulings protect only those employees who have a salary

Unpaid interns are left in a legal void without recourse if they experience harassment or other illegal actions

http://www.epi.org/publication/pm160/

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SEXUAL HARASSMENT IN THE WORKPLACE

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“A SURVEY OF HBR SUBSCRIBERS REVEALS THAT THE BIGGEST ISSUE IS NOT DEFINING SEXUAL HARASSMENT

BUT RECOGNIZING IT WHEN IT OCCURS”

(BLODGETT & COLLINS, 1981)

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• 42% of 694,000 women and 15% of 1,168,000 men said they had experienced some

form of harassment. (Blodgett & Collins, 1981)

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UNFORTUNATELY, SEXUAL HARASSMENT IS COMMON IN WORKPLACES THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES.

There are two established, legally prohibited types of sexual harassment:

•Quid pro quo: Compliance or noncompliance with a sexual demand is used as the basis of an employment decision (AAUW, 2012)

•Hostile work environment: An employee is subject to unwelcome verbal or physical sexual behavior, including requests for sexual favors and other conduct of a sexual nature that is either so severe or pervasive that it adversely affects her or his ability to do work. (AAUW, 2012)

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DID YOU KNOW?•Sexual harassment includes verbal, nonverbal, and physical behavior.

•Unwanted and unwelcome lewd jokes, gender-based slurs, and sexual contact all represent examples of sexual harassment.

•Behavior that creates a sexually hostile learning or working environment is also sexual harassment.

•Sexual harassment can occur between people of the same sex.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qE0wRYOwh6I

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DID YOU KNOW CONTINUED…•Whether the harassment occurs between a man and a women or people of the same sex, it’s still against the law.

•The victim of sexual harassment does not have to be the person directly harassed but could be anyone affected by the offensive conduct.

•Most people agree on what harassment is. But men and women disagree strongly on how frequently it occurs.

•The majority correlate the perceived seriousness of the behavior with the power of the person making the advance.

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WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW

•Top management appears isolated from situations involving harassment.

•Many women, in particular, despair of having traditionally male-dominated management understand how much harassment humiliates and frustrates them, and they despair of having management's support in resisting it.

•Most people think that the EEOC guidelines— although reasonable in theory—will be difficult to implement because they are too vague.

•According to Blackstone, McLaughlin, and Uggen’s article, Sexual Harassment, workplace authority, and the paradox of power from the American Sociological Review: sexual harassment can serve as an equalizer against women in power, motivated more by control and domination than by sexual desire.

Blackstone, A., McLaughlin, H., & Uggen, C. (2012). Sexual harassment, workplace authority, and the paradox of power. American Sociological Review, 77(4) 625-647.

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THE EDITORS OF HBR AND REDBOOK MAGAZINE SURVEYED 7,408 HBR SUBSCRIBERS....AND THIS IS WHAT THEY’VE CONCLUDED:

•Sexual harassment is seen as an issue of power. In four out of six situations, people rate a supervisor's behavior as considerably more serious and threatening than the same action by a coworker.

•Men and women generally agree in theory on what sexual harassment is but disagree on how often it occurs. Nearly two-thirds of the men, compared with about half the women surveyed, agree(or partly agree) with the statement, "The amount of sexual harassment at work is greatly exaggerated."

•Top management appears isolated from occurrences of harassment, and middle-level managers are somewhat less aware of misconduct than lower-level managers.

•Men are much less likely than women to report any sexual harassment.

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CONTINUED• Most respondents favor company policies against harassment, but few organizations have any policies to address it.

•29% of respondents work in companies where top executives have issued statements to employees disapproving of sexual misconduct, but 73% favor such statements.

•In general, most see the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) guidelines issued in 1980 as reasonable and necessary and agree that they will not be difficult to follow.

•But the returns show that the mildest and most pervasive forms are harder to prove and often impractical to take action on, even though the guidelines cover them.

•Most respondents think sexual harassment can be a very serious matter.

Blodgett, T., Collins, E., (1981). Sexual harassment. Some see it, some won’t. Harvard Business Review, 76-94.

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ASSUMPTIONS•The perceived seriousness of the harassment seems to depend on who is making the advance, the degree of interpreted intent, and the victim's perception of the consequences.

•Many people commented on how power influences perceptions of harassment.

•Perhaps women are often more conscious of social formalities and tend to accept this kind of behavior from supervisors, whereas men are more likely to consider it merely an encounter between the sexes.

•In most instances substantial differences appear in men's and women's perceptions of how frequently sexual harassment occurs.

Blodgett, T., Collins, E., (1981). Sexual harassment. Some see it, some won’t. Harvard Business Review, 76-94.

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DISCRIMINATION OF GENDER, RACE AND SEXUAL ORIENTATION IN THE WORKPLACE

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WORKPLACE DISCRIMINATION

Employers have been known to deny workers their rights based on many factors

We are focusing on 3 grounds for discrimination:

1. Race2. Sexual Orientation3. Gender

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FEDERAL LAWS PROHIBITING WORKPLACE DISCRIMINATION These legislations are enforced by the Equal

Opportunity Employment Commission: Title VII of the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 Equal Pay Act of 1963 Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 Title I & Title V of the Americans with Disabilities

Act of 1990 Sections 501 & 505 of the Rehabilitation Act of

1973 Title II of the Genetic Information

Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 Civil Rights Act of 1991

Some of these Acts have been somewhat ineffective Many states have their own laws extending protection

against discrimination to specific demographics

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DISCRIMINATION AGAINST RACE

According to the U.S. Census Bureau in 2006, black and Hispanic workers in America experience the highest rates of discrimination

Not only are people discriminated against in the hiring process based on race, there is also a wage gap

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CONT.

Often unaware of discrimination We tend to label ourselves as responsible Affirmative Action controversy

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DISCRIMINATION AGAINST SEXUAL ORIENTATION

No federal laws prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation

All legislation is currently on the state level

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=131fQF4CLg4&feature=related

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DISCRIMINATION AGAINST GENDER

Equal Pay Act of 1963

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CONT.

Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 Unemployment v. wage gap

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WHAT ACTIONS CAN YOU TAKE IF YOU OR A COLLEAGUE IS FACING DISCRIMINATION?

1. Make your employer aware of problem2. Let your employer know of your intentions3. Contact the EEOC4. Keep documentation/ evidence5. Know policies and laws against

discrimination6. Retain an attorney