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Editorial
Bullying in the work environment
With the allegations that Gordon Brown is frequently verbally and physically abusive to his staff, the question has been raised : where does one draw the line between being assertive and being a bully? It has also been asked whether, in a high pressure work environment this sort of “assertiveness” is needed and almost expected. I would say that it is never OK to be personally abusive towards staff. However, I think at times we are now so overly sensitive that every criticism is seen as a personal attack and in many professions, from politics to acting you need a thick skin to deal with a highly charged, highly pressured atmosphere or to deal with rejection. I think people need to understand that every set back or condemnation they may get in their working environment is purely professional and not a personal attack on you.
You only need to look at how well Alan Sugar has done to see that assertiveness can lead to great success. Whilst watching 'The Apprentice', Lord Sugar is often short-tempered and likes to get things done in the right way. This allows the apprentices to do their jobs better in future and learn from their mistakes. Whilst watching the programme it is often uncomfortable to watch this censure of candidates but I would argue it is a necessary evil to get the best out of people. However, there is a line that must not be crossed. Alan Sugar never becomes overly personal in his attacks, every criticism is in relation to the candidates’ work, and there is always that gigantic boardroom table between them so the attacks never become physical.
This, I believe, is the crucial factor. If the allegations that Mr. Brown grabbed employees “by the lapels” are correct then this is a physical violation that becomes unacceptable bullying. Continual and sustained personal attacks on a single person, where criticism has nothing to do with their work would also be classed as bullying. However, sustained criticism of a person’s work is completely justified if they are not performing to standard. No company can expect to run effectively if employers are afraid to tell their employees where they are going wrong. This would just lead to mistakes and then criticism from clients when their services are not running properly.
Assertiveness, then, is one thing, but a bullying boss is another. I think this is illustrative of a boss’ incompetence in their work rather than anything else. If they cannot think of a way of getting the best out of their workers other than being abusive then I think this shows the employer is the person that cannot cope and has a lack of control over the situation. If allegations of bullying in any job turn out to be true then perhaps the employer should question whether they are capable of doing their job well, as a mantra on an anti-bullying website states: “Those that can, do. Those that can’t, bully.”