Examples of Bullying
Bullying may be intentional or unintentional. However, it must be noted that when an allegation of bullying is made, the intention of the alleged bully is irrelevant and will not be given consideration where discipline action is produced. As with sexual harassment, it is the effect of the behavior on the individual that is important. The Company considers the following types of behavior as bullying:
Verbal
Slandering, ridiculing, or demeaning a person or their family.
Persistent name calling that is hurtful, insulting, or humiliating.
Using a person as the butt of jokes.
Abusive and offensive remarks.
Physical
Pushing, shoving, kicking, poking, or tripping.
Assault or threat of physical assault.
Damage to a person’s work area or property.
Gesture
Nonverbal threatening gestures.
Glances that can convey threatening messages.
Exclusion
Socially or physically excluding, or disregarding, a person in work-related activities.
In addition, the following examples may constitute or contribute to evidence of bullying in the workplace:
Public humiliation in any form.
Using verbal or obscene gestures.
Persistent singling out of one person.
Personal insults and use of offensive nicknames.
Not allowing the person to speak or express themselves.
Shouting or raising voice at an individual, whether publicly or privately.
Refusing reasonable requests for leave with the absence of work-related reasons.
Constant criticism on matters unrelated, or minimally related, to the person’s job.
Inflicting menial tasks not in alignment with the normal responsibilities of the job.
Public reprimands.
Unwanted physical contact.
Taking credit for another person’s ideas.
Ignoring or interrupting an individual at meetings.
Spreading rumors or gossip regarding an individual.
Repeatedly accusing an individual of unfounded errors.
Deliberately interfering with mail and other communications.
Encouraging others to disregard a manager or supervisor’s instructions.
Deliberately excluding an individual or isolating them from work-related activities.
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Manipulating the ability of someone to do their work.
e.g. overloading, underloading, withholding information, assigning meaningless tasks, setting deadlines that cannot be met, giving deliberately ambiguous instructions, etc.