Don’t Keep Silent About Harassment at Work

We spend most of our lives at work in an office, online and amongst colleagues, so it’s important that you are in a safe and secure environment. However, this isn’t always the case, and many people deal with harassment at work. Harassment can come in any shape or form and isn’t always easy to identify or explain. While sexual harassment is often the most easily identifiable type, other more subtle types of harassment or bullying can go unreported as employees may not realise the behaviour is unacceptable. People also often don’t realise that what some perceive as funny jokes, or banter, is offensive to others and, if repeated, may qualify as bullying or harassment under the definition of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth). It’s important to identify and address poor behaviours before they escalate and lead to a toxic workplace environment. At Pax People Resolutions, we pride ourselves on our ability to resolve conflicts between colleagues or employer and employee to improve the working environment before matters escalate out of control.

What You Should Know About a Toxic Workplace Culture

If you find yourself dreading work every morning, it could be because you’re dealing with a toxic workplace culture. If you are working in a toxic environment, it is likely to affect your performance at work, leave you feeling drained when you get home and significantly affect your unhealthy. Here is how you know when you are working in a toxic environment:

• Unmotivated co-workers. When your workplace environment is toxic, you’ll find that you and your co-workers may be doing the bare minimum of your job requirements. As a result, you’re likely to feel unmotivated and you watch the clock until you can go home.
• Lack of communication. Another sign of a bad working environment is when there is a lack of adequate communication between managers and their subordinates. Instead of asking for clarity, employees may try to assume what their managers want and avoid communicating with them because they find it too stressful. Lack of communication is dangerous and often creates conflict and risk at work.
• Business Outcomes and not caring about people. When companies start caring more about business outcomes than their employee’s wellbeing, this is a red flag that your workplace has become toxic and is likely to lead to you looking for a new job. Companies that don’t take good care of their employees, experience high employee turnover and many other negatives consequences.

Facts About Bullying at Work

If you think that bullying ends after high school, think again! There are, unfortunately, many cases of adults bullying one another at work; however, this type of bullying is often psychological, not physical and is equally as damaging to a person’s self-esteem and health. Bullying at work often leads to a workplace complaint that needs to be managed and resolved. Here are some important facts about bullying;

• Sometimes bullying isn’t obvious. Bullying is unreasonable behaviour directed towards a worker which is repetitive and causes a risk to their health and/or safety. Bullying can also include subtle behaviour such as intimidation, exclusion from work meetings and events, unreasonable criticism and setting of unreasonable work tasks.
• Take action when you feel bullied. When you feel like you are being bullied at work, you should immediately speak to your manager or human resources contact and report the behaviour that is troubling you. This will allow your company to consider and resolve the issue as soon as possible.
• Prevent bullying. The first step to preventing bullying at work is to set clear guidelines about expectations of appropriate behaviour and the consequences your employees will face if they are behaving inappropriately towards someone else. If poor behaviour occurs, you should bring in an independent workplace investigator or mediator to resolve the issue and consider reminding all employees about what constitutes acceptable behaviour in the workplace, how to identify it and how to prevent instances of bullying.

Pax People Resolutions Will Resolve Your Workplace Grievance Quickly and Effectively

With so many different types of personalities at work, conflict is inevitable. It is important to take action in relation to conflict as quickly as possible and engage a mediator before it gets worse. Pax People Resolutions are experts in dealing with multiple personality types and can mediate or investigate any workplace grievance at your company. Co-founders, Fiona Bigelli and Sarah Chan have over 25 years of experience in conflict management, human resources management, dispute resolution, law and coaching.  Fiona and Sarah are highly qualified, leading Nationally Accredited Mediators and certified conflict coaches. Pax People Resolutions will ensure your workplace culture remains productive by dealing with unproductive conflict efficiently and expertly.

For more information about Pax People Resolutions’ services or if you need workplace conflict resolved urgently, please don’t hesitate to contact us and allow us to restore productivity and good working relationships in your company.  Please also see our website www.paxpeople.com.au