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Workplace violence and bullying Workplace Health and Safety Management)

"Workplace Violence and Bullying"

As of there is no or federal current law forbidding workplace bullying in USA. However, an action can be initiated employing anti-discrimination laws and civil rights laws. Majority of the victims of workplace bullying suffer from acute stress, loss of self-esteem, critical mental and physical issues, which are likely to have further detrimental effect on their association with their families, partners, colleagues and friends. Thus, bullying in the workplace has become very serious social issue now. The New Health Workplace Bill which is introduced by 25 states will facilitate an employee to sue for bullying without demonstrating any evidence of discrimination. Further, an employer is also will be held accountable if he remains as a silent spectator when there is bullying in his workplace. Thus, employers should try to stop bullying demeanor in the workplace by perusing varied provisions in employment policies or through the employee handbooks that take care of bullying. This essay will also recommend suitable steps to be initiated for minimizing bullying in the workplace in the near future and to make USA as a nation free from workplace bullying. Introduction Violence in society, negative culture, instability, widespread discrimination and injustice is increasing thereby causing more anxieties. Many studies have found that there is a direct inroad of societal issues into the workplace, with violence as one of the chief concerns (Di Martino 2002). Bullying is also known as “mobbing “in many nations and in French-speaking world, it is known as “harassment.” Later, Leymann (1986) copied the phrase” bullying “in the schoolyard to denote the methodical maltreatment of members of the organizations, if prolonged, could result in acute psychological, social, and psychosomatic issues in the target. The American Psychologist Caroll M. Brodsky depicted brutality and cruelty behaviors of human beings in the works place. Brodsky , in 1976 itself enumerated the instances where employees at all organization levels had been systematically abused and mistreated by their co-employees or superiors in the workplace, with demoralizing impact on their health , productivity and well-being. U.S. scholars like Keashly (1998), Yamada (2004), Lutgen-Sandvik and Keashly and Jagatic exposed the bullying in the workplaces (Einarsen, Hoel, Zapf & Cooper2003: 8). This research essay will discuss in detail about workplace violence and bullying , its impact on the employers and employers , how current state and federal laws are not adequate to forbid the workplace bullying , how courts in USA have helped to prohibit such practices in the workplace , the need for separate legislation for banning bullying in the workplace and appropriate recommendations to improve the current scenario in USA. Workplace Bullying in USA- An Analysis Workplace violence includes physical violence such as shoving, kicking, pushing, unwelcome sexual touching, punching and sexual assaults and non-physical violence include intimidation, verbal abuse and threatening demeanor. One research study carried over in USA exhibits that taxi drivers have the greatest risk for workplace violence, which is six times greater than the nation’s average (Burdick, Berkowitz & Francis 2013:1). Bullying happens when there is an imbalance of authority which can be perceived one or real. The misuse of authority may happen due to seniority, size, and control of resources, authority or social influence. It can arise due to the fact of variance in personality, where one person is forceful and authoritative than the other, and due to command of language where one person has a quicker or sharper tongue than the other. Bullying can be happening from higher level to down, it can also occur among the employees’ at the same category which is also known as ‘sideway’ or ‘horizontal ‘bullying’. An ‘upward ‘bullying can happen when a lower-level employee directs the bullying towards the manager or the supervisor. Group bullying refers to the practice of bullying by a ring leader joining with his subordinates. Bullying may be intensifying due to a change in the atmosphere of the workplace due to arrival of a new colleague or a new manager who has higher or competent social skills (Burdick, Berkowitz & Francis 2013:1). Majority of the victims of workplace bullying suffer from acute stress, loss of self-esteem, critical mental and physical issues, which are likely to have further detrimental effect on their association with their families, partners, colleagues and friends (Richards & Freeman 2012).A prolonged hostile workplace atmosphere can result in prolonged duress stress order (PDSD), depression, physical or mental breakdown, financial issues, divorce, marital conflict and may even in suicide. Burdick, Berkowitz & Francis 2013:2). Workplace bullying is dependent on many factors like the perpetrator, victim , the employer , coworkers , the background of the victims’ , the background of the perpetrator , personality and the outside forces which may have direct effect on the scenario. (Burdick, Berkowitz & Francis 2013:2). As per Zogby (2007) poll, about 37% of the respondents in U.S.A agreed that they witnessed bullying in their workplace. As per 2010 U.S. Workplace Bullying Survey, 35% of interviewees (about 54 million people, the combined population of 6 western –most states in USA) said that they experienced bullying in their workplace either presently or in the past, whereas only 15% said that they witnessed it and whereas 50% reported that they never experienced it.


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