 Welcome to the new look Jaluch update! With allegations of bullying at Downing Street at the centre of political debate this week, we thought we would take the opportunity to add our slant.
Turning a blind eye to bullying and harassment at work can have devastating consequences, not least due to increased sickness levels and higher staff turnover, both of which can be damaging to business performance. If you’re really unlucky, you’ll even land a tribunal claim!
The Downing Street saga certainly highlights the consequences when those in leadership lack the relevant ‘people’ skills and self-awareness and have the potential to abuse their power. And what does it say about the culture of the organisation as a whole if bullying is perceived to take place from those at the very top? It is no wonder that staff at Downing Street are reported to be feeling powerless to raise such issues if this is the case.
Whether bullying takes the aggressive ‘bull in a china shop’ approach or a more subtle one, such as undermining staff, the real challenge faced by organisations is the fact that bullying is often based on perception.
At Jaluch, we see cases where employees who are under performing take any form of guidance or criticism as bullying and it is often those managers who actively manage and set clear expectations of staff that are therefore perceived as bullies, making it unclear where to draw the line between what constitutes active management and being labelled a bully.
It is also evident to us that many of those accused of being bullies do not set out to be bullies and problems often stem from poor communication skills and lack of emotional awareness. We suggest that training all employees, and particularly senior management, appropriately to raise awareness of potentially damaging patterns of behaviour goes a long way to preventing bullying and harassment in the workplace and avoiding a Downing Street scenario.
If you are thinking of introducing an anti-bullying policy or re-energising the one you have, please check out our top tips!
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