Bullying in work

Bullying

Big companies have a problem with their staff and bullying. I don't mean the staff are bullying one another - quite the contrary, I mean big companies bully their staff.

I'll give you an example. I work for a large educational institution and I was recently off work due to work based stress. The institution sent me to occupational health who assessed my condition as being entirely work related. I was then sent to see a specialist (they didn't seem to believe their own people!) who entirely agreed with the assessment and made recommendations to my Personnel department to help remedy the situation. He was completely ignored by Personnel, who told me they felt his recommendations were merely 'suggestions' and not strongly binding.

Instead of taking any helpful action, they informed me my paid sick leave was about to end (despite the fact I had several times attempted to meet with Personnel they only met with me when they had this leverage) which meant I could go on half pay and have financial difficulties to add to my stress, or return to work with the same stressors as I previously had.

I had no choice - I had to return. My immediate manager was very helpful (amazing how they want to help in a minor way after they've slapped you back into place) and arranged a few weeks of phased return. I did all I could to get back into things and was congratulated on how well I had done so. I learnt a number of coping techniques, including meditation for stressful times and believed things were going fairly well.

And then....

A number of months had passed and I found myself in a department meeting. These things cause me considerable stress and I had asked my manager to excuse me from them. Unfortunately she informed me this was not possible as the department head had insisted I was present. These meetings tend to be an opportunity for his favourites (or if rumours are true, latest bedmate!) to further their career prospects by claiming credit for other peoples work. I found my stress levels growing and decided to take advantage of sitting in a corner at the back of the room to use a relaxation technique. this involves closing your eyes and imagining yourself somewhere peaceful and calm whilst remaining aware of everything around you.

The meeting finished and I returned to work. The following day I received an immediate summons to see the department head, a man who can be quite charming when he wants something (although women tell me he is a slimy creep!) but is far less pleasant when he has staff alone. He began the meeting by staring at me without speaking, in a manner clearly intended to intimidate, for sometime. He then began to tell me off for sleeping in the meeting. I informed him I was not asleep but using the relaxation techniques which I had told my manager about and which I subsequently discovered he was aware of. He disregarded me and began to lecture me like a child who had misbehaved. I informed him I did not appreciate this and repeated my explanation. At which point he waved a hand and declared 'stress is just an excuse used for bad behaviour'. I told him I strongly disagreed and the meeting continued along these lines for some time.

Leaving the meeting, I felt very agitated and took the rest of the day off. The following morning I stayed home (my immediate manager and I had agreed I would take a sick day if I felt too stressed by work). The department head called me at home from a mobile phone and very aggressively demanded to know where I was and again lectured me about sleeping in meetings. The call became extremely stressful for me and I informed him of this. He ignored me and continued to be unpleasant. Three times I told him I did not welcome his call and that I believed it constituted harassment and I wanted Personnel involved. Eventually he hung up after I told him I intended making a complaint about his bullying.

This was my first mistake. He immediately contacted Personnel and began 'damage control'. By the time I went to them he already had a very different version of events cobbled together (I later learnt a senior Personnel officer assisted him with this) and was painting himself as a caring employer with a problem employee.

My first meeting with Personnel, as well as subsequent meetings, made it clear to me they did not want to accept a complaint about a senior manager. It was subtly suggested to me that it might prove very stressful to make a complaint and that it may well be harder on me than on the accused manager. Eventually I agreed to take a while to consider the decision. Personnel refused to even retain a copy of my version of events in my file because it was a serious accusation and couldn't be ignored if they had a copy! In other words if they didn't keep a record they could deny all knowledge!!!

During the next few months I noticed little things, such as being made to feel like the junior member of my team, despite being there for much longer than actual junior members, but I chose to ignore it. Then I found myself in front of a disciplinary hearing for answer a social question honestly. No-one who knew the story could believe it was happening and all informed me it was be dismissed as soon as Personnel heard the story. That was three months ago and it is still proceeding. I suggested to Personnel that this is harassment (especially as during the last three months I initiated a grievance against the department head ) and any outsider would view this as ongoing attempt at constructive dismissal. I hope to know the outcome of this action against me in the New Year.

What about the grievance I took out? When will that be heard, you may be wondering? That was dealt with almost instantly. The head of Personnel called me to his office and tried to gently discourage me, they provided the accused party with a senior personnel advisor (and access to my records) whilst informing me I must make my own arrangements for an advisor. I was, of course, not provided with the opportunity to see if there was anything in my department head's file that would demonstrate this behaviour had happened before (although, as I've been there longer than he has, I am already aware of other incidents). During the hearing , which was heard by his peers - other senior managers, he lied repeatedly and not very convincingly. I was interrogated by the panel while he was asked a few, perfunctory questions. I told the panel I was aware that the University did not like staff who complained about bullying, although there is a whole booklet explaining how to do so (ticking all the legal boxes!) and that I knew they would want to get rid of me as soon as possible. To their credit, none of them disagreed this was the case.

After the hearing the decision was issued that he was completely innocent and had been caring and considerate, while I was an angry, troubled staff member who wanted to cause him trouble because of unknown reasons.


My immediate manager has privately warned me to watch my back as senior people are "looking for an excuse". Now my work days are even more stressful than before and I dread going in.

Why not just leave? I hear you ask. Well it's not that easy is it? I need a new job first and it's hard to find anything similar enough to be able to get and still earn a living wage. It doesn't help when I have knowledge, but not proof, that my name is being blackened by the same people who want to get rid of me. Sounds insane, doesn't it? You want to get rid of someone but you make it impossible for them to get a new post. That's the problem with this pathetic individuals - they treat you like dirt, steal credit for your work and don't know when to stop kicking you. And all with the unspoken support of the senior management team.

I'm sure I'm not the only person who has had an experience like this, there are bound to be others with far worse stories. We need to find a way to expose these people and remind them this is the 21st Century, not the 18th. They cannot keep getting away with this behaviour with impunity.When I was younger I would have seriously considered taking matters into my own hands and provided the Department head with a 'physical reprimand'. However, I'm older (almost middle aged) and wiser now. Unfortunately that seems to mean I'm also powerless to deal with the situation. Ironic really isn't it. You find yourself at an age where the school bully is a dim memory and you're the victim of another bully. The worst part is you have to accept it or move on. Fighting back is no longer an option.

Or is it.......?