What is workplace bullying?

Workplace bullying is a repeated pattern of behavior intended to target, intimidate, offend, degrade, or humiliate a particular person or group. Although it may include physical abuse or the threat of abuse, bullying usually causes psychological rather than physical harm.

Effects of Workplace Bullying

Bullying affects the workplace environment and workers through:

• Poor performance, reduced quality and missed deadlines
• Increased absenteeism, turnover and overtime
• Reduced morale
• Sabotage when a bullied employee retaliates, by deliberately failing to meet a quota or a deadline
• Poor decision-making and increased likelihood of injury or unsafe behavior
• Increased need for supervision
• Increased workload for co-workers as a result of the target’s underperformance
• Increased cost of employee assistance programs
• Potential legal liability
• Recruitment and training costs to replace employees who leave because of bullying behavior

What You Should Know about Workplace Environments.

Anyone can be a workplace bully or the target of a bully: employees, managers and clients. An organization’s culture can mimic bullying behaviour when it fosters an environment that:

• Expects extra-long hours of work on a regular basis
• Labels those who complain as weak or inadequate
• Dismisses those who admit to, or show signs of, stress.

Workplace bullying is conduct that can make for a hostile, intimidating and abusive environment. It is intended to belittle, humiliate and mistreat a worker. As a result, it produces significant emotional upset, embarrassment and distress. This is conduct that goes beyond harsh discipline, strong expectations, close supervision, or motivational tactics. It steps clearly over the line in such a way that most people can agree that they “know it when they see it”.

Workplace bullying is as emotionally, financially and otherwise dangerous as any other form of workplace harassment. It can destroy lives, producing medical illness that has a person out of work, causing that person to rely upon insurance benefits, the public treasury, unemployment or disability benefits. It sounds like an awful problem, doesn’t it? It sounds like we ought to be doing something about it. In fact, New Jersey doesn’t have an anti-workplace bullying law.

The New Jersey Healthy Workplace Act

My colleague and friend, Senator Linda Greenstein, has been trying for years to pass the New Jersey Healthy Workplace Act, a bill that would create a private cause of action for bullied employees, if they can meet particular and stringent proofs. It’s a good law, and we ought to have it. It wouldn’t apply to anyone except those people who could demonstrate true emotional and medically provable consequences of workplace bullying.

But alas, the bill is opposed by powerful groups in New Jersey business and industry, groups that claim permitting compensable bullying suits will make New Jersey less “business favorable” or encourage frivolous lawsuits.

Senator Greenstein’s bill is strongly supported by the National Employment Lawyers’ Association – NJ Chapter — of which I am an active member. NELA-NJ has helped draft the most recent version of the Anti-Bullying bill. It is a terrific bill. While passage is uncertain, we feel that we have to try our best on behalf of suffering workers, the taxpayers who support them, and New Jersey’s public policy of workplace protection.

Related New Jersey Employment Laws

While there are already New Jersey laws that provide employees redress for bullying and harassing conduct, they are very limited in scope.? For instance, the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (“NJLAD”) only prohibits bullying when it is clear that it is motivated by the employee’s membership in a protected class.? Similarly, the Conscientious Employee Protection Act (“CEPA”) only prohibits bullying that is retaliatory in nature and must be directed at someone who has engaged in “protected conduct,” which is specifically and narrowly defined in the statute.

As a result, even the most tormented employees have a hard time finding an attorney who will accept their case if they are not members of a protected class or have not engaged in protected activity.? The existing gaps in the employment laws, especially this one, allow the “equal opportunity bully” to create a hostile work environment — and the “look the other way” employer to allow the bully’s misconduct to continue — without any fear of legal reprisal or consequences.

Are You a Bullying Victim?

Right now, we can only help the victims of workplace bullying when they also fit into one of the protected classifications of workplace discrimination or workplace harassment, such as bullying related to sexual orientation, disability, age, race, gender, sex, ethnicity, religion, military status, whistleblower status, etc.

Workplace bullying is destructive, costly and frankly, unnecessary and un-American. We have passed laws that address bigotry, refusal to give family leave and refusal to accommodate disabilities in the workplace, and we’ve tried to eradicate sexism and racism in the workplace.

CONCLUSION

If you support Senator Greenstein’s bill, let her know, and ask your NJ State Senator and Assemblymen to do the same.

If you think you are a victim of workplace bullying, send us an email to arrange a consultation to discuss your matter. We will do what we can for you under existing laws, until New Jersey gets serious about controlling workplace bullies.