Signs That You’re Being Bullied at Work

Workplace bullying is an insidious form of harassment. Mostly psychological in nature, workplace bullying or harassment is not easily spotted by absent or unthinking management who, if they witnessed or were told about a physical assault, would likely intervene in favor of the victim. Targets of bullying most often suffer in silence or leave their jobs when management fails to act. And when management fails, companies lose money.

Studies say that 37% of workers have experienced bullying on the job and that the cost to employers, in terms of lost productivity, high employee turnover, benefits payments, absenteeism and even litigation is upwards of 150 million dollars per year. Some costs, though, are more difficult to calculate – the loss of the most talented, creative and hard-working people from a company could ultimately be the most devastating effect of a toxic corporate culture.

Harassment at work has been addressed in the UK, Australia and in two privinces in Canada. Several US states are also considering protective legislation against workplace bullying and many companies have chosen to introduce their own policies to address the problem. In places were legislation or policy is absent, however, targeted workers are left with no option but to quit in order to maintain their physical and mental health

What are the signs that you are being bullied at work? Here’s a quick checklist:

You have lost any confidence that you know what you are doing in your job.

Bullying supervisors will change rules on a whim, belittle your efforts, and withhold information that you need to do your work properly.

You feel sick or panicked at the thought of returning to the office.

The relief you feel at the end of everyworkday quickly dissolves as the night nears its end and the start of the next workday approaches. You start to feel despondent, helpless and insecure the closer it gets to bedtime.

You feel you have no one to go to about your concerns.

The bully is often a favorite of management and seen as a tough, but effective member of the staff.

You feel an impending sense of doom.

At the start of every day or re-entering the environment after a lunch break, you feel that something probably happened in your absence.

Your spouse, partner or friends start telling you to just quit or “get over it, already!”

The bully isn’t just driving you crazy, she/he is driving everyone around you crazy as well.