wk5 db1 res1

Respond to… 

The conflict that I had an experience within the workplace was bullying behavior by my manager.  For the most part, it was not directed towards me.  However, this still did not make it easier to work in that environment.  Baack (2012) states that “Workplace bullying is repeated, health-harming mistreatment of one or more persons”(Section 7.4, para. 9).  This manager demonstrated that exact behavior.  The impact was felt by the entire staff on the team.  Morale was low.  There was also a large turnover in staff. 
Unfortunately, while the manager’s behavior was known to his supervisor, no effort was made by senior managers to change the bullying conduct.  According to Oade (2018) if no efforts are made to stop bullying in the workplace, “You will send a clear message to everyone that you are not prepared to take steps to create a workplace environment that is intolerant of bullying behavior and that places a high value on employees’ psychological safety and well-being” (p. 77).  Eventually, the staff did raise concerns about the manager to the Human Resources team.  The Human Resources team objectively examined the situation and conducted interviews with staff.  Unfortunately, after the conflict resolution was conducted by Human Resources, the negative bullying behavior continued.  The final resolution was the manager getting terminated from the company.  In addition, his supervisor that did not prevent the bullying behavior from his subordinate was also let go.
My recommendation to management at all levels is to never ignore bullying in the workplace.  The communications of no tolerance for such behavior should be reinforced at all times.  Even casual acceptance of bullying behavior can lead to larger consequences and potential lawsuits for the organization.  If bullying is ever discovered, it needs to be dealt with and communicated to the perpetrator immediately. 
References:
Baack, D. (2012). Management communication. Retrieved from https://ashford.content.edu
Oade, A. (2018). Responding to an incident of bullying at work: An opportunity to create a zero-tolerance culture. The Pyschologist-Manager Journal, 21(1), 75-83, Retrieved from PsycArticles.