Bullies have mastered the art of labeling, and giving nicknames to co-workers, causing internal harm to the agency. Bullying and verbal abuse can lead to social exclusion in the work place.
Workplace bullying is a persistent pattern of mistreatment from others in the workplace causing physical or emotional harm. It can include verbal, nonverbal, psychological, and physical abuse, as well as humiliation. Wikipedia
Officer committed suicide after being Bullied
A police officer shared a story in class about losing his partner to suicide. The constant bullying from other officers, and calling him names (that he told everyone to stop doing) went too far and too long.
No note, no warning, no good-bye to his family… he used his own gun, to end his life. Mental abuse can scar a person and an agency, to the point of no return.
Bullies are Toxic Employees in any public service agency, and they typically lack emotional intelligence and Empathy communication.
As public service professionals we can be overly critical, demeaning, and lack empathy when interacting with our zone partners, and others in our department. Commanders that stand up to bullies and unprofessional workplace behavior, are respected more when they report unprofessional behavior, vs look the other way.
“Workplace Bullying decreases VALUE in every public service agency. Everyone has a Duty to intervene inside the agency as well as out.” ~ Linda Webb, Co-founder of RITE Academy.
Don’t sweep bad behavior under the rug!
Bullying may take many forms, from physical assault, verbal abuse, and social exclusion to cyber bullying. Generally, to be considered bullying, the practice must be carried out either by an individual or a group within the workplace.
When you witness bad behavior, toxic employees, bullying… do you look the other way and just sweep it under the rug? Looking the other way, doesn’t make issues go away.
In 2017, the Workplace Bullying Institute estimated that 60.3 million workers in the U.S.A. alone have been affected by workplace bullying. If you see something, say something!
6 Signs of Bullying in the Workplace
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Looks to upset others
Do you know employees that repeatedly upset and bully others around them? Co-workers that are often mistreated will eventually complain. And if their complaints are not heard, and nothing changes, they could make matters worse for themselves and others.
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Lacks Empathy
Those who can’t connect with co-workers or act like they just don’t care for others well-being often lack empathy. They may “think” they care, but don’t know how to communicate it. Walking in another person’s shoes is the first step.
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Aggressive Behavior
This may include openly shouting, threatening or humiliating others in the workplace, as well as outside the department.
If you don’t VALUE others, the workplace culture will diminish.
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Thrives around insecure People
A classic sign of bullying is when you make yourself feel better by evoking discomfort or insecurity in others. This is often seen by persistently picking on someone or deliberately setting them up to fail.
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Spreads malicious Rumors
Spreading rumors can take an agency down at the knees.
Defined as a “Defamation of character” towards another, spreading lies is against what being a law enforcement officer is, and should not be tolerated.
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Misuse of power or position
Intentionally blocking someone’s promotion or take away duties and responsibilities without any rationale or substance. Other possibilities include deliberately and persistently ignoring or excluding someone from joint collaborations and social events.
The effects of bullying on individuals
Being bullied may create effects that include:
- Feelings of frustration and/or helplessness
- Increased sense of vulnerability
- Loss of confidence
- Physical symptoms such as:
- Inability to sleep
- Loss of appetite
- Psychosomatic symptoms such as:
- Stomach pains
- Headaches
- Panic or anxiety, especially about going to work
- Family tension and stress
- Inability to concentrate
- Low morale and productivity
How bullying effects the workplace
Bullying and the overall health of an organization…
- Increased absenteeism
- Increased turnover
- Increased stress
- Increased costs for employee assistance programs (EAPs), recruitment, etc
- Increased risk for accidents / incidents
- Decreased productivity and motivation
- Decreased morale
The workplace Bully will push good employees out
Creating a Professional Workplace
Teaching Professional Workplace Culture for Public Service Professionals, we travel the country and hear many stories of unprofessional behaviors that often includes bullying.
If you have internal Bullies within your department mistreating employees, can you only imagine the damage they can do in your community, while hurting your agency’s image.
Bullying can trigger an array of mental health issues including depression, burnout, increased absenteeism, low self-confidence, and stress. Take a stand within your agency… ZERO Tolerance for Bully’s
Professional Workplace Culture Training helps with:
- The Entitlement Complex
- Rumors and Gossip
- Mental Loop Leads to Negative Banter
- Implicit Bias and Knowing Your Hot Button
- Avoiding Block-out Syndrome
- 7-types of Workplace Harassment
- Building a better EDI program
- Improving negative Behavior with updated SOP
- Better Emotional Intelligence thru training
- Duty to Intervene – It’s ok to Step In, Tap Out, Take Over
- What’s proper for Social Media Posting
Police Executives have a ‘Duty-to-Intervene’ and establish Professional Workplace Culture Accountability Standards and Training to Stop Bullying!
Officer Wellness, increases the health, well-being, and mindfulness, of everyone inside the organization. Emotional Intelligence (EI) helps build better EDI relationships inside the agency, and out.
RITE Academy Stats
- Trained 950+ agencies on Professional Workplace Culture
- Created over 930 RITE train-the-trainers
- Gave out more than 550,000 RITE Tools for employees
- Provided over 100 newsletters for agencies to give to their employees
- Helped agencies reduce their use-of-force incidents by 65%
- Educated local governments, state, and federal representative on public safety reform
ABOUT RITE
At RITE Academy, we have provided training to fire, police, EMS, 911 operators and corrections officers, EI Tools and Exercises that help each person personally control their emotions. It’s a huge Ah-ha when you finally ‘wake up’ and realize that you have been holding yourself back.
With every class, the LADDER, Stop-Light, and NEW DAY Tools and Banners are included in the training, and left behind for the agency to use. RITE is not a one and done class!
