How to Deal With a Work-bully

When I think of bullies, I usually think of playgrounds and children, or even high-schools. But I never thought that I would find bullies in the workplace, but I did and more than once. Although anyone can become a victim, in the United States 80 percent of the time the person being bullied is a woman, according to an online survey by The Workplace Bullying & Trauma Institute (WBTI).


If your boss or even a co-worker is treating you worse than dirt, your health could be jeopardized. The sad truth is that work bullying is more common than what you may think. One in six people in America have suffered being bullied at the workplace. This has a toll on your health and it can cause depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress syndromes. Workplace bullying is two times more prevalent than sexual harassment," says Gary Namie, Ph.D., research director and president of the Workplace Bullying and Trauma Institute in Washington State and co-author of the book "The Bully at Work."
These are some steps that can be used to deal with it:

Difficulty:

Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Self-confidence
• Self-control
• Patience
• Written Documentation

1. Confront the Bully. This may be very hard to do, but it should be the first step. Tell them that you would appreciate it if they would step off a little. Will it work? There is a slight chance, but it is a good place to start.

2. If step 1 doesn't work, you may have to go to Human Resources or Management and expose the problem. Let them know that it is affecting both yours and the Bully's work.

3. Research your options; maybe take a few days off. Review other ways of dealing with it, such as internal company policies or legal actions that can be taken.

4. Is all the trouble worth it? Sometimes especially if the employer sides with the Bully, maybe it is time to move on to a new job. Staying in an environment where bullying is more than accepted, will only cause you pain and health problems.

Tips & Warnings

• In conclusion, Work bullying is a very real problem, but there are ways to deal with it. In my case I am no longer working at that company and it saved my sanity and health.