How workplace bullying went remote(bbc.com)
bbc.com
How workplace bullying went remote
https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20220819-how-workplace-bullying-went-remote
10 comments
I know how blunt and cynical this sounds, but as someone that (for whatever reason) consumes a lot of British news and culture I often get the feeling that the media is writing content for an infantilized public.
Does anyone else agree and/or have a better way of phrasing this perspective?
Does anyone else agree and/or have a better way of phrasing this perspective?
I don't think people are dumb though. Most working class people see through the BS because they live it everyday. I'm not talking about just us, I'm talking retail, waiters, miners, etc. They've seen way more shit with their bosses and life experiences to know what's what.
I don't think it's infantilizing. I think since these major news sites are owned and backed by the rich, they have certain messages they want to push. And one idea they don't want people to know about is worker organization. The rich all have a vested interest to not mention it at all and instead want us to use their rigged process to resolve issues.
Here's an interesting video that shows every news station saying the exact same thing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksb3KD6DfSI
I don't think it's infantilizing. I think since these major news sites are owned and backed by the rich, they have certain messages they want to push. And one idea they don't want people to know about is worker organization. The rich all have a vested interest to not mention it at all and instead want us to use their rigged process to resolve issues.
Here's an interesting video that shows every news station saying the exact same thing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksb3KD6DfSI
This expands the definition of "bullying" to include things like not inviting a co-worker to lunch with the rest of the group... while it could be a little rude, thats not bullying. Neither is a boss putting you on the spot in a zoom. Articles like this water down the definition of bullying so far that it makes the term meaningless.
You aren't entitled to love your job, your boss, your co-workers or the company and if you do they likely won't return the sentiment. They aren't your friends or your family and as long as you expect that from them you will be disappointed.
You aren't entitled to love your job, your boss, your co-workers or the company and if you do they likely won't return the sentiment. They aren't your friends or your family and as long as you expect that from them you will be disappointed.
Honestly, I’d hate to be invited to lunch with everyone because I would feel like I had to say yes. So inviting me constantly would be annoying. Now if I told my boss I didn’t like to be invited to lunch and they kept doing it… might be that they just don’t like me. I wouldn’t think that I’m being “bullied,” but that maybe I need to get involved in some office politics and hang out with my boss more to earn some respect.
That could be considered harassment, yea. There was a dude who told his boss he didn't want a birthday party due to anxiety and his boss ignored him and just went ahead and did it anyway.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-61141421
He got a 450$ million payout after the employee sued.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-61141421
He got a 450$ million payout after the employee sued.
> There was a dude who told his boss he didn't want a birthday party due to anxiety and his boss ignored him and just went ahead and did it anyway. He got a 450$ million payout after the employee sued.
More specifically, he told his boss he had an anxiety disorder and that a party could cause panic attacks, his boss did it anyway, chewed him out the next day and said he was "being a little girl", suspended him for a couple days and then fired him a couple days after.
He was awarded damages for the emotional distress and lost wages.
Sounds fair considering. "Don't have a party for me on my birthday" is a pretty reasonable accommodation for someone's mental health issues.
More specifically, he told his boss he had an anxiety disorder and that a party could cause panic attacks, his boss did it anyway, chewed him out the next day and said he was "being a little girl", suspended him for a couple days and then fired him a couple days after.
He was awarded damages for the emotional distress and lost wages.
Sounds fair considering. "Don't have a party for me on my birthday" is a pretty reasonable accommodation for someone's mental health issues.
So in this thread you say it bullying to both invite someone to lunch and not invite someone to lunch.
Of course, it depends on the person. If the person doesn't want lunch, and the boss keeps singling you out to go, that kinda disrespects you. And vice versa.
People are not all the same. Some people are shy, some people are gregarious. Respect their nature, that's it. When someone who has power over you just disregards you as a person, that's both not professional AND abusive if it happens over and over again. It's not a hard concept to get.
People are not all the same. Some people are shy, some people are gregarious. Respect their nature, that's it. When someone who has power over you just disregards you as a person, that's both not professional AND abusive if it happens over and over again. It's not a hard concept to get.
That's absolutely false. Bullying doesn't have to be just physical abuse, everything you listed definitely counts. While you don't have to be 'friends' with people at work, that's kind of irrelevant. Why not ask why this behavior is even acceptable in the first place, especially when work is supposed to be a professional environment?
> one option is to take the issue to HR, especially if the perpetrator is a boss. Although speaking up takes courage, Sharma advises people do it sooner rather than later “so that matters can be treated with a sense of urgency, and they don't impact your mental wellbeing in the long term”.
Yea, that's just gonna get you fired depending on how severe the accusations are, and whether the person being accused has clout within upper management. If your boss is friends with the big boss, guess whose ass HR is gonna can?
Sadly, every time these articles come out from these big publishers, none of them suggest worker organization. That's the best way to fight back against these toxic practices, look how much worker benefits we've gotten over the back of dead workers just by banding together and pushing back: fire exits, reduced work hours, no child labor, etc.