Battling Office Politics

Political Activity is alive and well in organisations – one of the biggest killers of productivity is not a lack of innovation, productive systems or visionary thinking, its politics (Fraser, 2013, p. 1). It is a major issue in organisations as the individual who controls their working relationship consumes time and resources for their own gain at the company’s expense. In this

Bullying and harassment within the workplace can be attributed to a myriad of factors. The work

Actively listen to what the employee is saying as it might reveal causes beyond the employee’s control.

Like any individual or team, there are going to be weaknesses. It’s not necessary to focus on them every time, however; it’s important to know what they are so when it comes about, it’s able to be addressed at that time and to avoid an conflicts or disagreements. Robbins & Judge said that, “When managers use collective work situations to enhance morale and teamwork, they must also be able to identify individual efforts. Otherwise, they must weigh the potential losses in productivity from using groups against the possible gains in worker satisfaction” (2013). Our teams weaknesses are being impatience, some might take themselves too seriously, can be critical, some might be slow decision-makers, won’t speak up or be unresponsive while others are over thinkers and don’t want to rick change. Also we fear work criticism, some don’t like surprises or the feeling of being hustled or looked at as too “soft”, and don’t want to lose control. Even though these are weaknesses, we don’t look at it that way because when one style is having these current issues, we can rely on each other’s strengths to come in and make sure everything stays in order.

It is Company policy that all harassment or discrimination will be promptly investigated and remedial steps taken. This can entail discipline or termination of the employee in question. The Company will not retaliate or allow retaliation against anyone who reports such conduct. If the complaint involves an individual in the employee’s direct line of supervision, then the employee should consult the General Manager or their Human Resource representative.

Cleary, M., Hunt, G. E., Walter, G., & Robertson, M. (2009). Dealing with bullying in the workplace. Journal of psychosocial nursing and mental health services, 47(12), 34-41. doi:10.3928/02793695-20091103-03

Have a one on one meeting with that specific team member to find solutions to move forward. Any team may have different points of view;

Workplace bullying/ non- sexual harassment needs to be addressed in the same manner that sexual harassment would be dealt with. Sexual harassment needs to be reported to the human resources office, and if the issue is not properly handled or it’s dismissed, a harassment claim needs to be filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

Friendship functions as an overbounded system. This does not remove the negative aspects of politics in organization, it simply demands that those conflicts, power games and coalitions be done behind the scenes and secretively. This ultimately damages the morale of the organization and contributes to its destruction. Many times an organization has numerous systems and standard operation procedures that power is removed from anyone who is not positioned to wield it or not accustomed to navigating to gain power. In the book, Reframing Organizations, it states, “If power is highly regulated, political activity is often forced under wraps” (Boleman, L & Deal, T, 2013, p. 201). In those cases, politics tend to take a seedy and ominous tone. Out front and in the hands of the

Unfortunately there is not only bullying in schools, there is bullying in the workplace as well. These are unacceptable behaviors that arise within a workplace situation. Bullying the workplace can take many forms and it’s not easy to always identify. The Fair Work Act 2009 made recent amendments that came into effect in January 2014 to define workplace bullying as occurring when an individual; group of individuals; repeatedly behaves unreasonably towards the worker, group of workers of which the worker is a member; and the behavior creates a risk to health and safety (Le Mire & Owens, 2014). This definition focuses on three main elements of bullying behavior, it is repeated, unreasonable, and creates a risk to health and safety. All three elements must be satisfied in order for bullying at the workplace to be found. Bullying behaviors could be things that are victimizing, humiliating, intimidating or threatening, but it is not limited to just those behaviors.

Lack of commitment – Team members never buy it to the decisions due to their opinions never truly being heard.

A harassment claim does not have to be simply made by the victim getting harassed, it can be made by other employees that have seen or heard something and who feel that they are distracted or are getting angered by such behavior. But, most of the time they are also scared to report such behavior for fear of either being harassed themselves or losing their jobs.

Workplace bullying is a widespread issue in which people need to be educated on in order to put an end to it. Its causes are complex and multi-faceted and yet preventable. Workplace bullying puts unnecessary strain on the employees It is the employer and organizations responsibility to provide a bully free environment for their employees. Employees should have the right to feel safe in their work environment and be free from workplace bullying. Employers need to be held accountable and have a plan in place to protect the employees from this type of violence. Unfortunately that is not always the case, in some instances the employer is the one doing the bullying. Workplace bullying carries many definitions in which will be

Bullying in the workplace is the topic that Heeman has addressed and evaluated with the aid of research from additional authors. Communication plays a major role in bullying when brought into the workplace and it can continue for extensive lengths of time if not managed and handled properly. The roles of bullying are included in Heeman’s report which are the bully, the target, and the bystander. The costs on the workplace can be threatening to the staffing, productivity and the overall work environment. Percentages and research are presented proving the amount of bullying that actually takes place in the workplace. Ways to combat the bullying are introduced into the report to include understanding and taking action to stop and prevent the bullying from continuing. Heeman concludes his report by mentioning that researchers need to focus their attention on finding solutions and ways to intercept bullying to lower the statistics and ratios.

Have you ever wondered what role politics and power play in organizations? When used effectively they can be compatible in reaching the organizations goals. Power is defined as the ability to get someone to do something you want done or the ability to make things happen in the way you want them. (Schermerhorn, Hunt, and Osborn, Chap. 15). Power is important within organizations because it is the way in which management influences individuals to make things happen. When power and influence combine, most of the time 'politics' become involved in some manner which may pose some problems. Organizational politics is best described as management influenced by self-interest through the use