Vulnerability is your greatest strength
Strange title for a blog about workplace bullying but it's probably the most powerful lesson I learned through this long and painful process. It was taught to me by a psychologist. I say taught because it wasn't simply a matter of hearing it and going 'oh ok'. It was a matter of putting it into practice which was a challenge to me because I don't like to appear vulnerable even if I am at my most vulnerable.
You're under pressure, feeling stressed, wanting - no needing - to achieve, maybe expecting far too much of yourself, striving for excellence ... sound familiar?
We do this to ourselves continually and then wonder why we suffer from anxiety.
BULLIES AND NARCISSISTS
These predators come out of the woodwork and start nipping at your heels. They are the "not-so-nice" people who love to prey on the innocent and take advantage of our strong values, sound work ethic and good nature.
Our sense of obligation and need to please makes us the perfect prey in a game where we not only don't know the rules but also don't have the equipment to play.
It's like trying to play pro tennis without a racquet. Impossible!!!
So now picture this ...
YOU CAN SAY NO
Be in control of your situation.
If you were facing a huge playing field with some very big, ugly and mean heavyweights glaring at you and trying to lure you out on that playing field would you go. NO!! Because you know it's a trap.
Bullies do the same thing. They try to lure you into their game, a situation where you are completely under their control where you don't know the rules, and where they know that no one survives only them.
All you need to do is stay in your safe corner. You do not have to follow them into a potentially dangerous environment. And I'm not talking physically, I'm talking mentally and emotionally. You need to simply say "no" and advise them that you feel unsafe.
Give yourself permission to say NO. Put your hand up and stop any conversations that are causing you concern. Put your hand up if you're being asked to do something that is not reasonable. Call behaviour out and put a name to it "inappropriate", "bullying", "intimidating", "feeing unsafe or threatened". Make sure that you stop any further engagement if you become distressed or feel unsafe.
What you feel is very real no matter how many times people discard it. You have the right to feel safe in your workplace and if you don't it is the organisation's duty of care to make it safe for you.
MAKE A NOTE ABOUT THE SITUATION AND WHAT YOU DID
I personally was bullied, intimidated, belittled, demeaned, isolated and targeted by someone who was formerly a friend but also a senior executive who I reported to directly.
The mistreatment started years before I recognised it. He regularly used the analogy of the boiling frog which turned out to be the perfect description of what happened to me. The story goes like this ... if a frog is put suddenly into boiling water it will jump out, but if the frog is put in tepid water which is then brought to a boil slowly, it will not perceive the danger and will be cooked to death. Of course this is not true however the analogy describes the inability or unwillingness to be aware of sinister threats that arise gradually rather than suddenly.
From the disbelief that a friend could be so very cruel to the constant fear of the next attack, to the slow assassination of my reputation and character at work. The roller coaster of feelings, fear, doubt, uncertainty, loneliness, isolation and despair left me hollow to the core. And unable to find a way out.
Thankfully I'm Irish, stubborn and bloody strong (or so I now realise) because I have stepped up to them all and am continuing to do even now in late 2018.
From senior executives to the public services commission to the industrial relations commission I'm not accepting anything other than what I deserve:
- an admission
- an apology
- real changes so this doesn't happen to anyone else again
TAKE ACTION
IF YOU'RE GOING THROUGH BULLYING, INTIMIDATION, OR UNREASONABLE MANAGEMENT ACTION, AND ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE A PUBLIC SERVANT THIS INFORMATION MIGHT HELP.
1. SEEK HELP
You may feel uncomfortable getting assistance but trust me you will need it and it's very worthwhile.
Your workplace should have an Employee Assist Program (EAP) that you can tap into the services of a psychiatrist. Taking this step can be awkward however it does a number of things:
it demonstrates that you are actively trying to deal with the situation i.e. you're not playing the victim
it provides an opportunity to gain some extremely useful life skills to help you deal with your situation, and also other situations in your life
the psychologist will teach you to give yourself permission to say no
you will be able to build confidence through being reminded that your concerns are valid
2. KEEP RECORDS
Write everything down including dates and times, names and details.
Keep copies of all relevant documents, calendar items, emails
Keep a separate copy at home
Record everything in sequential order
Identify potential witnesses and if possible get statements early because as it progresses people will likely avoid you like the plague
If you are going to travel down the WorkCover path make sure that you are not just making statements and advising that you have evidence - provide the evidence! Provide witness statements.
WorkCover do not want to support your claim
WorkCover do not want to support you to present a valid claim
You are on your own
you have one chance to provide absolute, indisputable evidence
Your claim will receive an employer response and provide you opportunity to respond. They will still support the employer even when you have advised that the employer response is based on lies.
Look at the WorkCover statistics: physical injury compared to mental injury
3. BE OPEN AND TRANSPARENT
Don't be afraid to tell people what you are going through. Organisations try to get you to keep quiet and not discuss what is happening to you but this is exactly what you should not do. The organisation is simply trying to hide the situation. They probably have many similar cases and don't want those impacted to know this.
Be sure to tell people in the right way and for the right reasons. It's good for all involved when everyone understands what's going on. It reduces gossip that can make matters much worse. It gives those close to you notice so that they might be more considerate of your sensitivity. It's also healthy for an organisation to be transparent and even more healthy for staff to be aware of how issues are addressed by the organisation.
4. REPORT YOUR CONCERNS
Report your concerns in writing through whatever channels are available to you. I can't express this point enough.
Report your complaint/s through the complaints management process
Find out:
who is allocated responsibility (a single individual) to coordinate action in relation to the matter, and ensure key time frames are met
what if any legal representation, IR representation will be made available to you should it be required
how evidence should be presented
what support is available within the organisation and/or through their employee assistance program
Get confirmation about of what relevant information about the matter would be passed back through the hierarchy determining what immediate action (if any) needed to be taken to locate and secure evidence
Seek assurance that sure that all complainants are engaged quickly and sensitively with
5. HOLD FAST TO YOUR VALUES
- Courage
- Respect
- Trust
- Honesty
- Integrity
6. PREPARE FOR THE PEOPLE SURPRISE
You may find that people start to put heaps of space between you them them. You may find yourself being treated like you have a contagious disease. In their eyes you will be a threat to them so they'll want to be as far away form you as possible.
You will realise a few things
- your work friends are not necessarily real friends
- when the chips are down you are on your own
- 99.9% of the people you know will not want to know about your situation, they will make you feel like a leper
I reported my concerns to:
Commissioner
Deputy Commissioner
Ethical Standards Branch (ESU)
Workforce Liaison Unit
Employee Relations
Work Safe
Worker's Compensation
Industrial Relations
Union
And nearly two years later the situation is not resolved. But don't be disheartened by this!! That is exactly why I'm documenting my experience. So that others don't have to go through the circus of a process that I did. I want this information to help people as much as possible to work the system for justice.
So my process went something like this:
Complaint to perpetrator (Assistant Commissioner)
Complaint to perpetrator's manager (Deputy Commissioner)
Meeting with Ethical Standards Unit resulting in their recommendation for an alternate resolution strategy
Deputy Commissioner providing only one alternate resolution strategy being mediation which I declined
The situation got progressively worse
One staff member broke down at work and took extended leave while I was left with the same issues and with less staff
I entered a WorkCover claim that was rejected based on reasonable management action (I'll get more into this later as it's extremely important)
I raised my issues with Work Safe
The organisation false advised Work Safe that my issues had been resolved. Work Safe were intending to close my case until I advised that the advice was false.
Work Safe found minor breaches by the organisation of the WH&S Act and advised that the organisation was undertaking engaging an external investigator to investigate my concerns
Based on the advice form Work Safe I made inquiries into what if any investigation was being undertaken resulting in the Deputy Commissioner warning me about bullying
While making these inquiries I was also offering evidence, support and requesting to be kept in the loop. None of this occurred.
The organisation was not investigating my concerns but rather their process with the Public Service Commission
I appealed the WorkCover decision and this was rejected based on their interpretation of reasonable management action
I used the organisation's recommended external investigation service however this was denied and my issue redirected back to the Deputy Commissioner
I raised my complaint once more with the Deputy Commissioner who informed me that this would be the last time, I did not receive a response when I queried when was the first time
I received a letter from the Deputy Commissioner regarding the Public Services Commission review that my complaint had been rejected and it could not be raised again
The letter referred me to the Ombudsman therefore I raised my issue there
The Ombudsman advised that I had not yet exhausted my options for resolution e.g. Industrial Relations
I reported my issue to Industrial Relations who advised that I had missed the cut-off date to appeal the PSC review decision. They were surprised that I had only received extracts from that review and in particular my letter omitted all options available to me other than the Ombudsman resulting in me missing the 21 day timeframe
Now I intend to request an extension based on the above circumstances as well as the fact that the letter wasn't dated.
If this fails I will continue to the Ombudsman.
Still to this day, 7 August 2018 I have not been provided
a contact to triage the process
advice on processes available to me
timeframes for an efficient process
opportunity to provide evidence
opportunity to discuss the issue/s
any advice regarding investigation being undertaken
any reports resulting from any investigations
A good reference for poor processes to addressing issues refer to the Allison Review - https://www.premiers.qld.gov.au/publications/categories/reports/qfes-report.aspx
So as you can see I've been through the wringer and am no closer to an outcome. I am however closer to the Ombudsman which is where I believe this needs to progress to because each issue leads to another greater issue:
- Bullying, intimidation and unreasonable management action
- A workplace condoning this behaviour by senior staff
- A workplace that did not exercise its duty to provide duty of care and a safe working environment
- A workplace that did not, and still does not, follow any reasonable process to investigate my
concerns
- A workplace that has condoned their senior staff providing false information to WorkCover to the psychological detriment of two staff members
- WorkCover disregarding my advice that they had reviewed my claim using false information
- WorkCover Review disregarding my advice that they had reviewed my claim using false information
MEDIATION IS NOT YOUR ONLY OPTION
In a situation where bullying has occurred and especially where there is an imbalance of position levels mediation may not be the most appropriate strategy.
Mediation requires that parties come together to honestly discuss the issues with the goal to a positive outcome. This can be nearly impossible with a bully especially if they are narcissistic. It's up to the organisation to provide more than one option for resolution, it cannot only be mediation.
BULLYING AND HARASSMENT
This is an extract from the Allison Report - 2.4. Bullying and harassment
Under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011, bullying and harassment refers to repetitive behaviour that is unwelcome and offensive, humiliating, intimidating or threatening and can take place anywhere, including in the workplace. Harassment is not just one type of behaviour and can involve abuse, violence, ridicule and unreasonable demands as well as less obvious behaviours aimed at isolating a person from colleagues, peers or friends. In addition to face-to-face encounters, harassment can happen through social media sites, email and texting.
Where workplace harassment is not specifically covered by anti-discrimination law, it may be covered by workplace health and safety legislation. Under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 Workplace Health and Safety Queensland can deal with workplace harassment (that is not unlawful discrimination, sexual harassment or vilification) where a person is at risk of injury or illness from repeated behaviour that is:
unwelcome and unsolicited considered to be offensive, intimidating, humiliating or threatening by that person would be considered offensive, intimidating, humiliating or threatening by a reasonable person.
Workplace harassment can occur between people in any direction within a workplace, such as between co-workers (laterally), a worker harassing a supervisor or employer (upwards), or a supervisor or employer harassing a worker (downwards). Before a complaint can be made to Workplace Health and Safety Queensland, the person being harassed must first raise the issue in the workplace and try to resolve it there. 2.5. Duties of employers Particular duties are placed on CEOs as heads of their organisation to ensure a safe workplace and there are significant liabilities associated with these duties. Section 133 of the Anti-Discrimination Act 1991 makes an employer vicariously liable for the actions of the employer’s workers or agents.
Under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011, officers (including CEOs of Government agencies) have a duty of care to ensure an organisation meets its workplace health and safety obligations, which extends to a requirement to be proactive in ensuring the organisation complies with its duties. These duties include provision and maintenance of a safe work environment, including safe systems of work. It also requires that the health of workers and conditions at the workplace are monitored for the purpose of preventing illness or injury arising in the workplace. A breach of this legislation can include where steps are not taken to avoid a risky situation from occurring.
LEARN FROM MY MISTAKES
Here is a list of issues raised in the Allison Review that align perfectly with my own issues regarding the process that were undertaken in response to my complaint:
- I was not informed of the steps intended to investigate and deal with the matter, options open to me, and the details of a person who would be regularly keeping me informed of the progress of the investigation
- I was not advised of the availability of support, other than psychological even after raising this as an issue
- I received no relevant information about the matter and little immediate action was taken to locate and secure evidence
- I was not advised of any person allocated responsibility to coordinate action in relation to the matter, and ensure key time frames were met
- I was not provided an opportunity to discuss my issues
- I was not provided an opportunity to present evidence
- When I progressed the matter to QIRC the perpetrator was represented by IR (two related organisations) however the organisation did not offer any assistance to me as the damaged party
- I had no visibility of communications up and down the hierarchy, no information or updates, no timelines, no opportunity to present evidence or discuss the issues, no reports of outcomes
- There were long periods of no communication at all and a lack of a consistent approach by a single person.
- There was a failure to acknowledge and recognise the ongoing behaviour which continued to cause injury to the complainant.
- There was a deliberate omission of information critical to the complaint that impeded the complainants process
WATCH THIS SPACE AS I INTEND TO POST COPIES OF MY OWN DOCUMENTATION (CENSORED) SO THAT PEOPLE COULD SEE WHAT I PRESENTED AND LEARN FROM WHY MY CLAIMS WERE DECLINED.
#bullying #intimidation #inappropriatemanagementaction #workplace #industrialrelations #vulnerability #narcissist
