The National Bullying Helpline has suspended services temporarily and announced that it is considering its future after it went public and said “three or four” Downing Street employees had called its helpline.
The HSE, in its study Bullying at work: a review of the literature, says that there are over the half a million cases of work-related stress reported each year in the UK and that, on average, each case results in 29 working days lost. Bullying is the cause of 10-20% of this, the report estimates.
Barry Winbolt
Workplace relationships and conflict resolution
The Blog
Accusations of bullying may be wrong
Nobody wins when accusations of bullying are based on a misunderstanding of what the term means. Bullying is a specific phenomenon which seeks to systematically demean and diminish an individual. It takes place regularly over an extended period, causes loss of confidence and self-esteem in the victim and in extreme cases results in psychological damage like depression, anxiety and even post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Knee-jerk reactions based on misuse of the term do harm and conceal genuine cases of bullying.
The power of an apology
We can all think of festering grudges that have tarnished or completely destroyed relationships, and most of us can probably think of a time when we could have said sorry but didn’t. An apology can be a powerful first step to remedy a troubled relationship, but we generally have a range of reasons for not offering it. Here are some do’s and don’t’s to get you started.
Workplace valentine?
Thinking about using the opportunity of Valentine’s Day to plunge into a new realationship at work?
Tut-tut! Not finger-wagging, just a suggestion to look before you leap. Sound advice, even if you don’t take it.
Mediation
Mediation provides an informal and highly effective way of helping people in conflict resolve things and restore their working relationship.
Workshops
Choose when and where to hold the workshop, and decide how many people you want to attend. A cost effective training option.
Consultancy
Work with a consultant who is experienced in the complexity of workplace relationships to with help anticipate change and improvement.
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The only guide you'll need for handling difficult behaviour. Accessible, readable and informative, the essential 'how to' for solving relationship problems.