Bullyinh in the workplace appears to be a subject nobody wishes to talk about, but yet it is so prominent. I have been bullied and observed bullying and it has become of a particular interest to me. I keep wondering why the social work profession has a high percentage of bullying, much unreported hasten to say.
I have several hypothesis, observing those who bully in my experience tends to be managers, although some have been my equals. I think it tends to be more prevalent in rural communities, although I am generalising here.
If one is a good social worker, good at their job, intelligent, knowledgeable, skilled and experienced or and not forgetting passionate and enthusiastic, then you’re at risk of being bullied in my opinion. You would think that all these attributions would be welcomed, but it appears not in my view. Such qualities of a social worker are a threat to many, especially managers. There are some really good managers who would not be threatened to manager such high calibre staff, but these managers are far and few between. My experience is, for the many managers I have worked under they feel incredibly threatened and I think this is because they are at risk of being exposed. There are many qualities a manager needs to possess in order to be an effective and efficient team leader, to command a team and bring the best out of your team is a highly skilled and specialised job, and not all can do this. Unfortunately those who can’t appear to be promoted into these roles and this I feel adds to the stress and frustration we social workers see, feel and experience in our profession.
I have worked with so many skilled and experienced social workers throughout my career and I have seen some of the best leave, not surprisingly.
In the last four years of my career as a social worker I have experienced seven managers ranging from assistant team managers, team managers and head of departments. My view is these people somehow think they are god, and play with people’s lives including clients, children and members of staff. I do not wish to be unkind, but none of these managers appeared to possess the necessary qualities one would need to manage a team. For example some of the qualities I refer to are basic, for instance, effectively communicate, give clear instructions, provide direction, be likable, supportive, encourage good practice, good listening skills, be trustworthy, honest, open to new ideas, forward thinking, but my experience is that so few managers have such qualities and this is why they become threatened by staff below them who clearly demonstrate the capacity to be effective and efficient in their role.
It’s not a pleasant feeling when you’re being bullied by your managers, it’s heartbreaking, soul destroying, disempowering, and incredibly stressful. There are supposed to be policy and procedures in place to help prevent this sort of behaviour in the work place – but it’s very difficult to take action – which is wrong. If one makes a complaint, somehow its your fault and your the one with the problem. I have spent a lot of time looking at myself, considering what part I might have played and spent over a year in therapy discussing this issues with my counsellor. The latest round is that my manager has not decided I am the bully - something I must amit is laughable. But I am lucky that I have a counsellor who has known me for over a year and was able to help me see that this is not true. However had I been vulnerable in the workplace and not the strong charactor I am, this could have had deverstating consequences. I have seen this in other colleagues who resort to going on sick leave then leave the employment.
I joined the profession because I wanted to make a difference to the lives of vulnerable people – but I am being prevented from doing so by the very people who I thought shared in the same values and beliefs as I did, but somewhere along the road they have lost sight to the importance of the work we do – this is the greatest shame of all.
However I believe one of the fundamental causes of those who bully, is stress and in today’s climate I think it is worse than ever. The stress, pressures and frustrations we are all experiencing is phenomenally high to say the least and there is no support to help us deal with the emotional stress we carry. If I was a counsellor I would be in counselling too – this is what the profession needs. As social workers we should have counselling built into our practice. Keeping oneself emotionally healthy is an important aspect of our practice. How can we make such important decisions about a child and its family or vulnerable adults if we are highly stressed and charged, and not thinking clearly. How can we think clearly if we are highly stressed juggling high case loads, family life (for some) and all the other stresses life brings. We all know best decisions are made with a clear head and a calm attitude.
I want to see an end to bullying in the workplace and to do this I think we must stand up and raise awareness about bullying and find a way to send a clear message to all – BULLYING IS NOT ACCEPTABLE AND WILL NOT BE TOLERATED. THOSE FOUND TO BE BULLYING OR BULLIED WILL BE SUBJECT TO INTENSE TALK THERAPY, STRESS MANAGEMENT AND RELAXATION CLASSESS.
Hi Grapevine
Don't know if not any replies so far because people are afraid to report instances of bullying on here! Well, my thoughts on what you say are that you seem to making a huge generalisation about social work managers, or else you've just been incredibly unlucky! Don't get me wrong, I've both seen bullying happen to others (yes, in one case clearly the manager felt threatened by the SW involved) and I have had a few "discriminatory/bullying" comments made to me by a manager prior to leaving due to my mental health problem - the last kind of thing you'd expect from a fellow SW professional!
However, what you say is very general - you have not been specific about the bullying incidents -perhaps through fear of being identified?
There are some fantastic managers out there, and I was fortunate enough to have had one of those, so take heart. If you're being bullied to the extent that you are needing counselling, would it be possible to find another job? Although, I agree in an "ideal world" we would all have the luxury of counselling in order to practice to our optimum capacity. But, a good manager should be able to provide support and the challenges, checks and balances in order for safe decisions about practice issues to be made.
Good luck...PF x
Bullies need to be exposed, however when they are middle to senior managers , life becomes very difficult for those on the recieving end. In the majority of cases other staff will sympathise, but not overtly support, as they have financial needs etc, My own experience of bullies is to take them on head on and make sure every one hears the confrontation, as the bully will not like to be exposed, however one has to be ready to pay a price, one director told me I was not a team player for exposing other managers as liars? I was soon on my way.
oab: Bullies need to be exposed, however when they are middle to senior managers , life becomes very difficult for those on the recieving end. In the majority of cases other staff will sympathise, but not overtly support, as they have financial needs etc, My own experience of bullies is to take them on head on and make sure every one hears the confrontation, as the bully will not like to be exposed, however one has to be ready to pay a price, one director told me I was not a team player for exposing other managers as liars? I was soon on my way.
Bullying is quite complex, sometimes overt sometimes covert. I don't think any one method will always work and confrontation can work, but one has to think about whether a change of behaviour is being sort or a need to make the Bully lose-face with others. Sometimes bullies function from their own inner workings. akin to those with sociopathic traits. However, I have often discovered that a managers own line-manager may facilitate a culture of bullying and tackling one element or person within this culture can leave the culture intact.
WHO IS TO BLAME FOR BULLYING IN THE WORK PLACE - LOOK IN THE MIRROR WE ALL LET IT HAPPEN AS LONG AS WE ARE DIVIDED AND HAVE NO NATIONAL INDEPENDENT VOICE WE ARE COOKED - I READ A LOT ABOUT NATIONAL TARGETS - THINK TANKS - IMPROVEMENT PLANS ETC.
I SEE A NUMBER OF SO CALLED SOCIAL WORK BODIES FROM BASW TO THE ACADEMICS AND GSCC ALL WANTING THERE SAY -
AND FOR ALL THEIR POSTURING IT IS LIKE READING ABOUT THE KINGS NEW SUIT OF CLOTHES ALL THEY APPEAR TO WANT IS THEIR OWN PLACE AT THE GOVERNMENTS TEA PARTY AND PRETEND THAT IF WE CHANGE THE COURSE TO MAKE US ALL MBA OR EVEN PHD'S WE WILL NOT HAVE ANOTHER BABY PETER WHEN THE MASTERS - THE GUESTS AT THE PARTY AND THE ONES AT THE COAL FACE ALL KNOW YOU CAN'T PUT A QUART INTO A PINT POT BUT AT LEAST ALL THOSE GUESTS GET TO PRETEND TO KEEP A SLICE OF THE CAKE AND EAT IT.
WE NEED SOMEONE AT THE TABLE TO REPRESENT THE SOCIAL WORKER NOT THERE OWN POSITION (BET THE GSCC GOT A SHOCK RECENTLY) WONDER WHO WILL FEEL THE AXE NEXT
PLEASE WAKE UP ALL OF THESE BODIES TRY TO DO THE IMPOSSIBLE - A BEAST CAN'T HAVE TWO MASTERS WE NEED TO LOOK TO OURSELVES TO PROTECT THOSE WE SERVE.
Hi everyone
It's great that you feel able to discuss the issue of bullying in social work here on CareSpace. However, I just want to remind everyone not to go into details about specific cases or incidents. CareSpace is not the place to make allegations about the conduct of potentially identifiable colleagues.
Thanks
CareSpace support
What a breath of fresh air reading this and thank you for your honesty, you are right I have witnessed bullying in this profession many years and am horrified at how it is so overlooked because of status and fear of the reprocussions.. We welcomed a new head of department and I was advised by others that had worked with her before that she was known as being ruthless and that she would tear strips of you' and then they said 'but thats just her', so because its 'just her' we have to tolerate that because its a profession that if you are known to complain life can become miserable, they dont mingle in the tea room because they have worked up. Its shocking given the training and the whole ethos of Social Work. And then people question why Social Work is in such a crisis if people werent motivated by their own status and showed a little more compassion on the frontline staff then maybe the profession wouldnt be in such a dilemma, respect would come from within.
Yes while I agree stress is a contributing factor but when you work on the frontline, stress is managed and you dont take your frustrations out on clients, but then its ok to take it out on your staff(but youll only get away with it when you hit a certain level), totally unacceptable practice but its become a culture and it will be one that will be very difficult to break as their positions are very valuable and no one who wants to keep their job will challenge someone in that role and they know it!
Bullying is painful and can wreck lives. I find it heart breaking that anyone who meets the criteria to become a compassionate social worker then goes on to become a bully. I feel unsure if these people are always concious of their behaviour or indeed how this impacts on those who percieve themselves to be the victim of such painful events.
Working in any environment where this culture is accepted is dangerous and should not be tolerated. Good management (which I have been fortunate to experience) should be one which encourages growth and expands knowledge in a safe forum. However, when one does not experience this but is faced with the sociopathic style magager who constantly ridcules or is unapproachable, the consequences can be devasting.
It is so fantastic to see so many people taking an interest in this topic and actively engaging in the debate. I think this is a really good way to exchange our thoughts, feelings and experience and raise awareness which collectively could contribute to changing the culture.
I am the original poster of this topic and I just want to let people know that whilst I am experiencing being bullied in the workplace and it is taking its toll on my health and emotional well-being I will not be bullied. I have found the strength to challenge back but in a very respectful and dignified manner. I will keep smiling – this I have found to be an interesting cause of action to take. Don’t let them see that you are losing confidence and being worn down by the process, just keep smiling!!
We are the care of the community, we are here to protect, help and support the most vulnerable in our society but yet we boast one of the worst professions for bullying in the workplace. So many people’s lives are wrecked by such unkind acts.
Please bullying in the workplace must stop – let’s be kind to each other, let’s support each other, let’s offer words of encouragement and support to our colleagues. Let a colleague know how valued they are in the workplace, tell a colleague one thing they do well. Collectively let’s begin to raise the self esteem, confidence and self worth in each other within the workplace. If you observe a colleague being bullied, don’t let them stand alone, offer support in whatever capacity you can muster up – this might be providing evidence of your observations. My experience is bullies can only be stopped if there is more than one person making the same complaint. Let’s stand together in our profession and make the difference.
Im sorry to hear what you are being subjected to, bullying in an environment that is meant to promote , values, respect, non-judgement, antidiscriminatory parctice,the hypocrocy! Your braver than me, you have said how it is taking its toll and of course it would do, the environment without being bullied is stressfull enough, its an absolute disgrace that you are being subjected to this. Regrettably the saddest reality is is that your not alone but its concerning in this profession how they can get away with what they do and how they do it, because it will be justified they will say its about best practice and not bullying, which is more concerning because its calculated, which suggests its intentional and they are aware of what they are doing. My heart really goes out to you and the more I hear about whats become a cultural norm in this environment is concerning. SW really need more support the SCC really needs to impliment more supports, we pay the fee lets ask for what we need, as we clearly need it. Its a bit like the army and how bullying became a social 'norm' until it was publically challenged and it was only now that 'bullies' are being challenged and made accountable for their unacceptable behaviours.
I would encourage SW's to stand united but culturally for whatever reason they dont.(that in its self speaks volums) We pay a registration fee and all we ever read in print is about SW's not doing and being struck off, we never hear of gross misconduct in regards to systematic bullying or intimidation by managers and above. They become untouchable, we need to see change, go public or do whatever it takes for SW's to work in a supportive nurturing environment that promotes respect for everyone!
My hat goes off to you, and I admire the strength you had to endure what they threw at you. Its amazing the strength we have when we need it and your certainly evidence of that!
Its tragic to hear such a terrible storey and I dont doubt for one minute how they scrutinised everything you did, I have seen this happen to a few collegues and its tragic to watch a persons self esteem drop from 100 to minus figures, they become consumed with fear and anxiety and the impact on their own families is also noticeable. How can this carry on being swept under the carpet. Policies need revisited and more stringent systems need to be implimented.
This highlights the 'urgent' need for change!
Well said. Absolutely. Cant agree more. As for having a masters or phd solving all ills, it will. It will exclude most value based people and a cosy academic coterie will exist that congratulates itself at every opportunity and solves all societal ills by relabelling them. Is there any evidence to show that making the social work degree harder creates better social workers?
Most of the highly qualified social workers I know go up the ladder before they are competent. Sorry if this offends but as I said most of the social workers I know..............The majority of the work is done at the coal face, most managers havent spent enough time there.
Most bullies are scared. If you are bullied they are scared of you or your practice. I once leaned accross and put my hand on a bully's arm in a meeting and asked her if she was okay, she snarled a response of "fine" and asked why I asked. I just said she was obviously upset about something to be bullying everyone the way she does. The shade of purple on her face was most attractive after that. Remember if you feel bullied, you are bullied. Bullies know they are bullies it's only fair we should acknowledge their skill especially publically. After all, it is often the only skill they have.
Tell them. I know it's not easy. What is? Tell them - I need you to stop bullying me. Okay they will get back at you but you can't live your life in fear of what they might do - that's what they are banking on.
I also have been bulllied and have taken out a greivance against senior management, it is being investigated by HR, however, I do'nt expect to get far with it as this particular manager has been investigated by HR in the past and people have just left their jobs. I have always thought I was strong but this has taken its toll on my health. I intend to see this through to the end but sometimes it feels like a black cloud over my head, I can't leave a proffession I love dearly just because some manager is being mean. I try to keep a balanced few of the situation and I know there are very good managers in social work but it only takes one bad one to ruin peoples lifes.
\Hello to everyone and those that are involved in this thread,
I would just like to say that I begun a thread 'bullying of students in placements' 3 years ago. I had never been exposed to such awful behaviour by so called professionals. I lost my faith, passion and identity. I became ill and more worringly cynical. My wonderful tutor, uni peers and friends and family stood by me and believed in me. Subsequent investigations proved my innocence and exposed their bullying tactics. My self esteem and confidence despite subsequent sucessfull placements has been forever dented. I graduated with a 2-1 not bad for a single very mature mum of 4 children one with a severe and enduring health condition coupled with autisim.
I graduated and within a few weeks had an interview for a job. In these difficult times I procured a job of my dreams - in learning disability. They are the most lovely team of 'proper' social workers ones that hold close BASW ethics, morals etc that I have ever come across. Yes resources are being tightened - yes I have to make difficult decisions - yes services need to be cut but I can still go home at the end of the day happy not frustrated. I need not immerse myself in organisational bureacracy because it is not prevelant in my team. My line manager is a severe radical a fantastic chap firm fair and damn funny. Alot of laughter and alot of support exisits in my office along with a no blame culture. My faith and passion for SW is back - however the damage created by the bullies is ingrained - much to the dissappointment of my bosses whom are trying to gently coax me out of my self destructive mindset.
All I would like to say is believe - believe in yourself. Remember bullies only bully the very people they aspire to be.
Social Work, as a profession really needs to stamp this problem out once and for all. It is stunting creativity and creating hostile environments where everyone is seemingly 'out for themselves'. The losers are the service users and the social work profession.
Yes there are some good fair managers 'out there' - unfortunately they are few and far between.
It's all about power.
If we do not stand up to these individuals our beloved profession will continue to receive insurmoutable amounts of negative press and our service users/clients will pay the ultimate price.
That was a wonderfully uplifting and inspiring post Bettyboop; one that I felt compelled to respond to. I am so pleased you completed your degree in Social work and achieved such brilliant results under very difficult circumstances.
I too, experienced similar bullying within my placements on many levels and this had a major effect on my self-esteem and confidence. However, I have graduated (with a 2:1 also) as a mature student with a son with a severe disability and now have a permanent post in a Family and Childcare team and am doing very well within this supportive caring environment. Nevertheless, sadly my previous experiences have impacted upon my self-esteem and confidence. However i am gradually improving in this respect.
The bullies will not win!![:
@]
bettyboop: It's all about power. If we do not stand up to these individuals our beloved profession will continue to receive insurmoutable amounts of negative press and our service users/clients will pay the ultimate price.
Im so sorry to read the situation you are in and that you are still awaiting an outcome, Im sure you must be very anxious, complaining is very daunting but you did the right thing, at least you have shown them that people will stand up to the bully. Of course they will justify their behaviour but they'll know in their heart that their behaviour is unacceptable. I wish you all the very best and as a Social Worker to another, Im very proud that you have stood up and I wish more would, we all need to stand up for our rights. Remember this is not about you, its about a flawed system that encourages bullys to move up the ladder. Stand strong and good luck!!!!
I have recently been subject to bullying from a new manager. It is suprising how quick someone can pull a team apart. In a matter of only a few weeks, they completley destroyed the team, and had all the social workers in tears on a regular basis, in fact 4 of us applied for new jobs.
What suprised me, was how quickly the team was destroyed. We were a longstanding and strong team before the new manager came. Passive aggressive is so hard to challenge.
Like other comments above, it has always surprised me how much bullying goes on in social work teams - I mean, come on, we are social workers so bullying goes against everything we are supposed to believe in and goes against the ethics we work by. Our jobs are hard enough without the added pressure of bullying within the work place.
My experience of bullying is that bullies, or groups of bullies, bully out of fear of being exposed as inadequate or not up to the job or simply in need of further training and/or because they feel threatened by the person they single out for bullying. People who have worked in the same LA for many years will have formed alliances. If a new person comes in and questions their practice more often than not they will react badly. Groups of bullies are notorious in this situation as they single out the person eventually labelled as 'different', 'confrontational' or some other term which they can all agree. There is a name for group bullying 'mobbing'. This has been very well researched and suggests that 'mobbing' is usually carried out by workers on a manager. Frontline managers do not have the same security network as senior managers. If a senior manager takes a disliking to you, you have problems. If a group of workers feel threatened , often by a change in working practices, they can make life very difficult for the manager, gather round and make complaints usually in secret. Bullies do not like to be exposed and do not want to be accountable for any allegations they make about an individual. It is a horrible situation to be in but once again this has been very well researech. There are people known to have killed themselves as a result of mobbing. Unbelievable when you consider the profession we are working in but not entirely surprising. Once allegations have been made about an individual that person may never know who said what and may never have an opportunity to answer to challenge the bullies. The bullies are happy with this. Some research findings suggest that if you do find yourself in this situation, for the sake of your emotional health , confidence and self esteem, the best thing to do is leave. This tends to go against the grain if you are someone who takes a stand against injustice but you will undoubtedly pay a very high price.
It is really great to see so many people openly discussing this issue as it is a real problem in my opinion. So many of the comments on here ring so true, especially with regard to middle management. There are so many different forms of bullying, from an over-abrasive and derogatory boss to silly chat behind someone's back, I have no idea why we can't just be decent to each other, it would make such a better working environment. These things can change if we all group together, person by person. I think if I am decent to other people hopefully that positive energy will spread to others and they will follow suit also, this may be naive but what else can be done.
I am currently being bullied by my manager who bullied me in the past. I moved teams rather then tackle the bullying but the manager then moved to my team this has resurfaced.
I am determined to fight it this time, though regularly feel like just giving up social work completely. The manager's response is to 'nit pick' at everything I do to make me look incompetent. As a result I am becoming more and more stressed and missing more things - it feels like a no win situation.
I have been in touch with 3 ex colleagues who were also bullied by this manager and their support has been fantastic - but why do we need to go through this? Haven't these managers got anything better to do?
Bin in SW for 30 yrs. Bin bullied like a lot above. Only once have I seen a manager get his just deserts.
You could try the Gareth Compton approach. Anyone got a baseball bat?
I think the first thing is to maintain a diary, but not make it obvious you are doing so. Record the time and date of any bullying and pertinent details.
After a few weeks, go first to your doctor and ask for a a prescription for work-related stress. Then go to your union rep if you have one, or otherwise HR. Mention the stress you are under and that you have seen your MD. If the union rep advices it, open a formal complaint. Don't mention the diary at this point unless specifically asked to do so. You might be asked to start compiling one in any case. If HR are reluctant to intervene, with or without union assistance then you are best to seek independent advice from an employment lawyer.
You might be advised to have a 'have it out meeting' with the manager. Make sure his/her manager is present. Ensure you have a colleague, preferably union rep present AND someone from HR, all to take notes. If your manager details he/she is unhappy with your work then request the details of when he/she planned remedial actions to start and what program was to be followed. Obviously he/she will be unable to do that, and there and then another complaint can be registered with HR. If the manager is unhappy with your work, then you can probably squeeze remedial training from him. Agree that you will both select the courses to go on and when to take them. Under advice you might suggest that a senior colleague be selected to monitor your work, and if he/she agrees, ask why this wasn't done before. Once again there won't be an adequate answer.
The general strategy is for the manager to realize that you are simply too dangerous to deal with and that continued bullying of you will come at a heavy price. The diary though is the last resort, and only really useful in an Employment Tribunal. In the event your MD signs you off - ensure the sick note details 'work-related stress' every single time, and keep copies of these notes. Such a course of action isn't always best for career development.
RachelL: I think the first thing is to maintain a diary, but not make it obvious you are doing so. Record the time and date of any bullying and pertinent details. After a few weeks, go first to your doctor and ask for a a prescription for work-related stress. Then go to your union rep if you have one, or otherwise HR. Mention the stress you are under and that you have seen your MD. If the union rep advices it, open a formal complaint. Don't mention the diary at this point unless specifically asked to do so. You might be asked to start compiling one in any case. If HR are reluctant to intervene, with or without union assistance then you are best to seek independent advice from an employment lawyer. You might be advised to have a 'have it out meeting' with the manager. Make sure his/her manager is present. Ensure you have a colleague, preferably union rep present AND someone from HR, all to take notes. If your manager details he/she is unhappy with your work then request the details of when he/she planned remedial actions to start and what program was to be followed. Obviously he/she will be unable to do that, and there and then another complaint can be registered with HR. If the manager is unhappy with your work, then you can probably squeeze remedial training from him. Agree that you will both select the courses to go on and when to take them. Under advice you might suggest that a senior colleague be selected to monitor your work, and if he/she agrees, ask why this wasn't done before. Once again there won't be an adequate answer. The general strategy is for the manager to realize that you are simply too dangerous to deal with and that continued bullying of you will come at a heavy price. The diary though is the last resort, and only really useful in an Employment Tribunal. In the event your MD signs you off - ensure the sick note details 'work-related stress' every single time, and keep copies of these notes. Such a course of action isn't always best for career development.
Excellent advice RachelL
Bullying aside 'grapevine' your point about counselling as a universal service for all staff employed in this profession is a good one and something I firmly believe. Unfortunately, it takes a lot of personal strength for someone who has always provided the support e.g social workers, to suddenly admit and acknowledge that actually they may need to be a service user for a while themselves. I believe that if more social workers were able to access this type of support and space for deep personal reflection, the high stress levels that most labour under would diminish considerably and service delivery would undoubtedly improve.