# 1 - Don't be a bully

A survey by Drake International of over 800 Australia-wide employees recently revealed that bullying is still rife in Australian workplaces, with more than 50% of survey respondents stating that they had witnessed bullying behaviour and over 25% saying they had been a target of bullying themselves.

It's not a striking revelation that bullying is a bad road to go down, but often in high-powered, competitive and stressful professions - such as law - there can be a fine line to walk between a hard word and 'constructive criticism' and harassment.

However, with surveys such as the aforementioned raising awareness of bullying in the workplace and the introduction of codes of practices, changes to legislation and stringent new harassment laws set to be introduced by the Federal Government, the issue of workplace bullying is gaining momentum. So it's a good idea to ensure that you are not crossing the line.

"I think there's greater awareness in the workforce about what's acceptable and what's not and organisations have in place proper policies and procedures. I also think a lot of Gen Y won't put up with what older Gen X and Baby Boomers put up with - because they've never worked in a workplace that hasn't had an awareness of bullying. Previous generations had a tendency to put up and shut up," says Jo Kamira, principal at Wise Workplace Investigations.

Another point Kamira makes is that there are many misconceptions about what 'bullying' consists of and those misconceptions can lead to serious mistakes which could negatively impact on your career.

She notes that often the first things that spring to mind when the word 'bullying' is used are the hazing or initiation rites that tradespeople or apprentices suffer; and following that overt sexual harassment comes to mind. However, she says that bullying often takes far more subtle forms.

"Sometimes it's hard to put your finger on what's wrong. It can be that subtle. It can be little things like assuming that because someone has a position they should be able to do a job, but not giving them the information to do that job. That's not overt - it could be explained away by saying the workplace is very busy or the manager doesn't have the time. But if that manager thinks that person isn't really capable then that's a subtle type of bullying as well, which is just as insidious as someone doing something overt," she said.

There are many types of bullying (see box-out below); and in this day and age, in some ways, bullies have also been aided by the rise of the internet and e-communication where instant communication such as Twitter makes it easy to transmit messages that are offensive, humiliating or intimidating.

However, Kamira says she has been surprised that in the process of investigating several cases of alleged e-bullying by managers, she's discovered another form of bullying, called 'upwards bullying', where the manager is sometimes being bullied by employee.

For example, upwards bullying may be used to destroy an individual's reputation - and in the competitive job market, this is more commonplace than one might believe.

Cost of bullying

Taking a moment to introspectively analyse whether you may be a bully or using bullying tactics is worth considering if you're serious about your career development and want to be part of a successful firm - otherwise there could be a high price to pay.

2008 data puts the cost of workplace bullying at A$160,000 per 100 employees per annum, which equates to A$1,600 per person per year. However, the cost of bullying can be measured in more ways than one, according to  Bernie Althofer, managing director of EGL I Assessments.

"This data may not take into consideration the diverse range of indirect costs that can be incurred and there does not appear to be any way of collecting those costs without creating a bureaucratic reporting process," said Bernie Althofer, managing director of EGL I Assessments

These include performance and productivity, sickness - such as direct and indirect costs including benefits, administration, plus costs associated with medical/ill-health retirement etc, medical costs - including the provision of welfare and counselling, occupational health services, doctor/psychologists/psychiatrists/counsellors and consultants' reports, etc.

There are also consequential losses - such as those direct and indirect costs including staff leaving, training investment, loss of knowledge and experience of subject, clients, customers, procedures, etc, and the flow on effects from adverse publicity.

Word of mouth and a bad reputation also travel fast and you may inadvertently be sabotaging your chances of attracting the best talent to work with you later down the track. 

How to turn bullying behaviour into best practice

So how do you know if you're being a bully or coming across as one?

While there's no test or surefire way to identify whether you are viewed as a bully, there are checkpoints that can be helpful to avoid offending those in the workplace and certain ways to be tactful when dealing with employees and employers to ensure you're not crossing the line.

* Firm but fair
Being a boss isn't a popularity contest. Everyone needs a telling off at some point. Do not scold people severely with a dressing down; just make your point firmly without intimidating or frightening your employees.

* Take a deep breath
Don't shout every time you feel the temperature rising. Do your best to restrain yourself and take a step back. If you get a reputation as a tantrum king or queen then you will automatically get the bully label.

* Communicate
Find time to sit down and communicate with your team or assistant, no matter how busy you are. Thrashing out the week's priorities over a coffee will reduce stress levels and any potential conflict when the going gets tough.

* Measure yourself
If you have a problem with one of your team then address it in the right manner. Do not rant or bitch about their shortcomings behind their back as this will undermine them and ultimately make them feel inferior and excluded. It might also make them a target for others.

* Keep a level playing field
While people deserve praise when they have done a good job, make sure you play fair. Letting 'favourites' develop is a dangerous game that can upset office politics and make people feel excluded.

* Don't be a mirror
If you don't like the way your boss treats you, don't act like them. Think about how you feel when someone treats you badly. Just because you've been managed badly, doesn't mean you have the right to dish it out further down the line.

* Listen to ideas
If someone challenges you, don't bite their head off. Think about what they have to say, make a note and let them know how their idea may work next time.

* Don't leave people out
When you organise the company get-together, make sure everyone is involved. Try and encourage everyone to attend if they can, and don't let anyone feel that they are being excluded or left out.

Source: http://www.dignityatwork.org/advice/what-is-bullying/. * The Dignity at Work Partnership is the world's largest anti-bullying project.

>> Next week: Ten ways to bust your career - #2

Types of bullying

There may be a perception that workplace bullying is a one-on-one situation. Whilst this might be true in some cases, there is research that suggests others might be involved. In his 1996 book Bully in Sight, Tim Field outlined the following types of bullying:

* Pressure or unwitting
o Stress of the moment - 'normal' behaviour
o When organisations struggle to adapt to changing markets, reduced income, cuts in budgets, imposed expectations and other external pressures

* Organisational
o Where employer abuses employees with impunity knowing that the law is weak and jobs are scarce - coercing employees to work 60/70/80 hours a week and then making life hell for anyone who complains

* Institutional
o When bullying becomes part of the culture and accepted

* Client
o When employees are bullied by those they serve or when employees bully their clients

* Serial
o Where the source of all dysfunction can be traced to one individual, who picks on one employee after another

* Secondary
o Unwitting bullying which people start exhibiting when there's a serial bully in the department

* Pair
o Serial bully with a colleague. One talks and the other watches and listens. Watch the quiet one. Usually opposite gender and frequently there's an affair going on.

* Gang
o Serial bully with colleagues. They flourish in corporate bullying climates.

* Bully as an extrovert - shouter and screamer - easily identifiable and recordable

* Introvert - in background initiating the mayhem - harder to identify - most dangerous

* Vicarious
o Where two parties are encouraged to engage in adversarial interaction or conflict

* Regulation
o Where the serial bully forces their target to comply with rules, regulations, procedures or laws regardless of their appropriateness, applicability or necessity

* Residual
o Bullying of all kinds that continues after the serial bully has left. Like recruits, etc.
o Promotes, therefore the serial bully bequeaths a dysfunctional environment to those who are left. 

* Cyber
o Misuse of e-mail systems or internet forums for sending aggressive flame mail. Also called Cyber stalking and now referred to by some as cyber bullying