WORKPLACE BULLYING: A Case Analysis

By: Angelie Joy Decena

I. CASE BACKGROUND

Mistreatment in a workplace is inevitable. It does not only happen to young boys and
girls in the school but it can also happen among workers and bosses in a big company or even in
a small institution. This case started in a community elementary school when Mam Mora, a
newly hired teacher was assigned as a Grade 6 adviser. She came from a different department in
the government. Now she is now in the department of Education. She works in a school which
composed of 8 teachers and headed by Mr. Giba, a newly promoted Head Teacher III. Mr. Giba
was in his late 40s, very competent in terms of school management, a good speaker, autocratic in
nature but afraid to embrace modern technology. In short he is computer illiterate. Her co-
workers are mostly from that barangay and much known personalities. In her first year of
teaching, the school was an ideal place to exercise what she learned from the university. It was a
happy school year for her. But during her second year in the service it turns to be different for
she was given an additional task not related to teaching, as a designate Disbursing Officer. With
the new task, she has to spend more hours for that purpose. Her contact hours to her class were
lessen, at times she has to stay in the office for a whole day just to finish bulk of papers for the
liquidation report of the MOOE. And whenever there are also reports she was always tasked to
finish it on time. With that scenario, many rumors from her co-teachers came across to her that
she is no longer meeting her class, she is no longer teaching; that she is just staying in the office
for no reason and even teased her as an assistant principal. This bad joke also spreads out to
community and even in a facebook posted by one of her co-teachers and gained negative
comments. Eventually, a parent confronts her and even brought the issue to the principal. There
on she sometimes declined to the task given to her but “it’s a part of our job and you are young
and energetic” as her School Head always say. The issue created misunderstanding, grudge and
unstable environment among the workers. With this reason, she was moved to Grade 5 class
when one of her co-teacher was transferred to other district. A month later, she was again moved
to Grade 3 class for no known reason. During programs or any activities she has to make
program invitations and always assigned as Emcee, as their co-teachers say that job was for the
young ones. Sometimes she can’t also say no to her co teachers whenever they ask to download
and print their Daily Lesson Log. She has to do it for she does not want to hear any words from
them. As days passed, she felt that she is being used. Her enthusiasm to her work as a teacher
has declined and she can no longer concentrate in her work. She was irritated whenever there are
reports to be made. And with this she feels like quitting and even applies for a transfer.

II. CASE ANALYSIS

Workplace bullying has been recognized as a harmful feature of modern workplaces with
long-term damaging effects for both the bullied individuals as well as the organizations. It
happens to be a deliberate, ongoing, and subtle activity with all its negative implications
carefully masked, that is, “severe and pervasive problem” In fact, workplace bullying can be
characterized as an invisible, “intensively, individualized and harmful experience” Workplace
bullying involves repeated acts, in which one or more individuals engage in, with the intent to
harm others and create a hostile working. The case of Mam Mora is considered as a form of
bullying in a work place. According to S. Fox & Stallwort, work-related bullying, individuals are
given heavy workloads, their applications for leaves are refused, and they are allocated menial
tasks Bullying behaviors include shifting opinions, overruling the victim’s decision,
professionally attacking the victim, and openly flaunting one’s status and power . With the
situation, Mam Mora was misjudged by her co-workers and even bannered criticisms in social
media and she was even transferred to another grade level for unjustifiable reason, these are
unfair judgments and criticisms. She was also given an over workload by her Head Teachers as
well as her co-workers. These actions lead not only to psychological harm but also to health-
related issues financial loss, lowered morale, reduced productivity, and loyalty. In fact,
workplace bullying could be a “more crippling and devastating problem for employees than all
other work-related stress put together”

III. INTERVENTIONS

Employees are among an organization’s most important resources and coined as most
valuable asset. It involves maintaining a work environment that satisfies the need of
individual employee and management. Improve employee morale, building company
culture, conveying expectations are among the focus of an organization. But when a
company experiences management problem it ruins the organization’s objective. The case of
Mam Mora who was bullied by her co-teachers need to be resolved to uplift her morale in
performing her duty as a teacher.
Studies and researches investigate intervention strategies in workplace bullying which
could prevent and resolve the issue of work-related psychosocial risk. A distinction
regarding workplace bullying approaches is often made between the organization, job level
and individual orientation. On the other hand, distinction is made between stage of
prevention, i.e. between primary, secondary and tertiary level of intervention. (PRIMA-EF)
Primary interventions are proactive by nature aiming at reducing the risk of bullying
at work. These include for example anti-bullying policies and action plans, registration of
violent incidents and designing out of risk and redesign of the psychosocial and physical
work environment. Secondary interventions are timely reactive strategies. It aims to
increase individual resources or breaking the escalating process. Bullying interventions
include for example training, staff survey and conflict/case resolution. Tertiary interventions
aim at reducing and healing the damages of bullying. These include corporate agreements
and programs of after-care counseling and therapy.

IV. PERSONAL REFLECTION

 In any organization, conflicts, both major and minor may rise. These conflicts can cause far
reaching negative effects on the people in your workplace. Sad to note that workplace bullying
is evident in some places, like in our school. The issue giving a heavy workload to a newly hired
teacher has a norm in a certain institution. The new ones do the dirty works like serving visitors
and washing of plates during occasions, in charge of programs, encoding and so on. This
saddened me because I myself have encountered and experience a form of bullying in our
school. And these give remorse feelings over co-workers, school head and institution itself. With
this I say, the school must take full responsibility to those whose lives have been affected by
being subjected to bullying. It must reinforce the dominant assumptions about power and
control within the school’s structure. To change the culture of the school we need to
reconceptualize our understanding how the schools need to be structured to be effective within
the relationships of those who work in the institution. In an effort to create workplace cultures
of collegiality, consciousness raising both the school head and the teachers’ specific to the
impact of workplace culture on people’s health and sense of personal security is vital. Such
environment require commitment to mutual respect and relationships characterized by
reciprocity and with this a n opportunity will be open for imbedding best practices and policies
specific to workplace bullying and worker relations into the mission and vision of the school
thus fostering a climate of empowerment and growth for those who work on it.