I have to agree with the OP here...bullying is a massive and almost accepted part of the corporate world now, and it's getting much worse very
quickly. I'm going through a similar situation myself, having been bullied by my line manager almost to the point of a nervous breakdown last year,
and the repercussions of those events are still being dealt with today. I can't talk for every company and every set of experiences, but I know from
my own experience that bullying is just about the regulation MO for management in many many companies, and if you try to blow the whistle at anything
but the highest level, you will be ignored, ridiculed, harrassed out of your job as soon as they can manage it.
I'm at a loss as to how to deal with it, short of long detailed letters to chief executives and posting videos on YouTube, as much to embarrass them
as anything else. Company procedures, trade union involvement, and even legal action just dont work, at least not quickly enough, and anyone short of
the guy at the top is going to have another agenda. The brutal truth is that we are cannon fodder...they simple don't care about employee welfare,
just how much work they can get out of us, and how little they can get away with paying us. That's the bare truth of it, no matter how much corporate
spin doctors will dress it up otherwise. Anyone who believes that the company they work for genuinely care for their happiness is perhaps a little
delusional, at best, or maybe is lucky enough to work for the rare employer who has their staff interests at heart, as well as their profits.
Sadly, I'm not an isolated case. I have witnessed bullying in the company, by many individuals, on many occasions, and very often in public. I've
taken a stand on it, which has made my life hell, and I can completely understand why another person might think that walking away and getting their
life back is the easier and quicker option. I sometimes wish I had! The current business climate is so harsh, and profits so squeezed in many sectors,
that pressure seems to accumulate at the bottom of the structure...the boots on the ground if you like...simply so that middle and senior management
can show that they have done their job. It becomes a tick box excercise of counselling, disciplinaries, harrassment, discussions, threats...anything
at all that will move the blame for poor performance away from them.
So ....what to do about it..? I feel there are two options that will help me retain some kind of sanity and quality of life. Firstly, from a moral
point of view, I MUST challenge them, the managers, the company, the chief executive, the MD, and at least let them know what goes on in their
business. I have to make myself the most annoying thorn in their sides, if legal action wont work (more of this later) just to wake them up, and
hopefully find some kind of understanding. Hopefully the main culprits will be challenged at some point in this process. I live in hope! Secondly...I
have to get out of the corporate world. It's not healthy and getting sicker by the moment, dumbing down it's staff with ludicrous training sessions
that would insult 4 year olds, and giving no credit for intelligence, initiative, diplomacy, people skills, or any of the other traits I would have
hoped an employer would find valuable. Maybe the corporate world and it's security (if you play their game) is attractive to a lot of people. I
don't have children so I suspect I would feel differently if I did, and had more than just me to feeed and keep warm. For me, and many many other
people I've found on my internet trawls for information, it's just not healthy, so I have to get out and create my own living.
This is a very interesting site I found about the prevalence of psychopaths in business...lots of information and ideas on how to tackle the issues,
if you feel you want to, or need to. At the very least, it will help you understand that you are not alone.
Understanding psychopaths in the
workplace
I hope my little rant has maybe been helpful to someone somewhere. If you are reading this and are in the enviable position of having a decent
employer to work for, I envy you, and please don't dismiss what we say here as weak minded, childish whining....it's not. This is a serious and
growing problem, and will only get worse if not tackled. However, calling out the bullies, which I have done on many occasions, is almost as hard as
putting up with their behaviour in the first place...usually it results in very underhand reactions, and aggressive defence of their position, often
with back up from their cronies. This cronyism is also a major factor in maintaining the power play. Often there is a group of people with common
interests or background who effectively form a management gang, making any challenge practically impossible.
Hmmm...letter to Chief Exec next...
