Anti-Bullying Week: Bullying in Different Environments

Former Member

Today is the final day of our Anti-Bullying Week posts so I wanted to finish us on some thoughts around bullying in different environments!

In the media, bullying is mainly shown to be in school - however, this really isn't the case. Anyone of any age can be bullied by another person or people. It may not 'feel' like bullying because bullying is just what kids do in school isn't it? No. 

Bullying, unfortunately, can happen in places such as work, online, at home or even in your neighbourhood. I myself felt bullied by a member of the management team at my previous job because he would mock me and my panic attacks. I spoke up about this to Human Resources and this person received a disciplinary and went on to leave the company. Bullying is not okay. 

If you feel like you're being bullied but you have doubts on whether it is bullying or not, it probably is. It can be easy to dismiss the bullying because its not in the typical environment you would expect it to be (e.g. school), but it's important to remember that bullying can happen anywhere and there is support available. 

For more support:

Bullying at Work:
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/bullying-at-work/

Bullying at Home:
https://www.befrienders.org/bullying-at-home

Bullying:
https://www.nationalbullyinghelpline.co.uk/

Former Member

Hey @Eleanor !

This is a very insightful post! 

I am glad you were confident enough to report this person to HR. I am also glad you brought this up. HR is very important, not only because they deal with any sort of situation but because they allow staff to report things anonymously if they would like to. This is very good because bullies can make victims feel so scared that they suffer in silence!  

Former Member

Ah yes I agree @Tee A HR is amazing for keeping yourself anonymous! If anyone has any problems with the management team bullying them or anything else, HR are great people to reach out too! 

Maisy

This is important to know. I used to think bullying only happened in school, but now I know that's not the case. I do worry about workplace bullying but it's good to know that it should be taken seriously  

JustV

This is so, so important.

I once had a manager who bullied my entire workplace (not at The Mix!), but a lot of us didn't really identify it until he left. He was so charming and funny at first - and I liked him and respected him - but slowly he created an incredibly toxic atmosphere. Scary example of that sort of manipulation.

He would lash out at people physically and verbally, and his wife (my line manager at the time) later told us he was abusive in their relationship. Really nasty piece of work. I worked in a chippy, and he even once threw a battered fish, fresh from a friar, across the shop. Miracle no staff or customers were burned.

We also later found out he ran for political office when he moved t'North.

In hindsight, a lot of us said we should have spoken up. Our combined voices could probably have changed things, though job security and money was a big concern (we lived in Cornwall).

Everyone should - as a bare minimum - feel safe in their workplace.

Former Member

I agree Mike, feeling safe is a basic human right! No one should be treated poorly anywhere, let alone in the workplace. So much rides on going to work, it's how we pay our bills, afford food and clothes and when something like this happened, most people are fearful to speak up because their job is such a lifeline!