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Legal Observer, SoftSettle Support

SoftSettle believes that everyone should be treated with dignity and respect at work.

Bullying or intimidation is an issue that gets worse the longer it is left unaddressed. In developing a policy to prevent harassment or bullying, the focus needs to be on preventing and responding to behaviors that are offensive or potentially harmful to others. The intention is to have psychologically safe interactions among all workplace stakeholders. What follows is information to provide context for the prevention of workplace harassment and bullying. In this case, there is no such policy being developed by the management for the company to get the issues addressed so as to make everything congenial.

Tackling bullying in a workplace is challenging for the management so far as they have not developed a policy to that effect. It is a normal, acceptable part of life and human interaction, and it is often unavoidable, given that we work with people who have different personalities, communication styles, backgrounds, etc. Those involved have equal power in the workplace relationship. While interactions can get emotional or heated, power and attention are not the focus. They are simply differences of opinion apart from hatred and animosity against the system. Conflict often results from poor communication or the inability of co-workers to control their emotions. In this case, also such calamity occurred so far as the workers are preoccupied with such emotions that are too wide-ranging cannot be contained and controlled.

You will understand the comprehensive attitude of the conflict on analyzing the issues underlying in the real case confronted by a lady incumbent and management.

The incumbent was intimidated mercilessly and she could not bear the brunt of the blame as the management turned sour towards her for the support of the employees who are bent on bullying the lady incumbent as their team leader. 

Seeking the remedy in the Court of Law could be the first option. But court litigation is highly expensive, time delaying and further, it would damage the reputation of the employer to whom the employee has a soft-corner so far as she was elevated to the position of team leader without any proper training or seniority. As an immediate alternative the employee or the bullied worker has found an ideal legal platform in Mediator Affair.

The employer held responsible for the vicarious liability of the employees who were bent on intimidating the bullied worker who had filed the case with Mediator Affair.

The bullied worker was elevated as the Team Leader, but unfortunately did not receive any management training prior to her appointment as team leader, and there was widespread bitterness in the team about the removal of their previous team leader. They were under the impression that their favorite team leader previously holding the position was deliberately removed for providing space to the new incumbent, the white lady of the management.

The team members then convened a meeting (too which the bullied employee was not invited), where a document listing complaints about the new team leader was drafted and given to the team leader’s manager.

The manager accepted the document and refused to intervene in any meaningful way when requested to do so by the bullied employee.

The immediate management acting on behalf of the  employer also ignored the request of the bullied employee and she was forced to leave the position due to the development of a psychiatric condition.

In this online resolution (combined mediation & arbitration) using the platform Mediator Affair (after two or three caucus or private sessions with employer followed by arbitration procedure), the employer was ordered to  pay a reasonable sum in the form of compensatory damages against leading the bullied worker subjected to the psychological injury acquired in the workplace and to retain the bullied employee in a suitable position of the company.

Normally, conflict is isolated and happens only occasionally; it is not an ongoing situation that is emotionally or physically damaging to anyone involved. Usually, bullying is a deliberate act with the intention to hurt, intimidate, threaten or insult another person; bullies want to have control over the other person.

Recognition is only the first step. As an employer you also have the obligation to address both conflict and bullying. Hence a company policy has to be developed to this effect apart from providing moral classes to the employees to restrain themselves so as to keep themselves away from getting subjected to unnecessary emotions that likely to cause hatred and hostility towards their fellow colleagues.