A 2001 article written by Ray Williams and published in Psychology Today entitled "Workplace Bullying: the Silent Epidemic" provides the following statistics:
In two surveys by the Workplace Bullying Institute (WBI) and Zogby International, where bullying was defined as "repeated mistreatment: sabotage by others that prevented work from getting done, verbal abuse, threatening conduct, intimidation and humiliation," 35% of workers experienced bullying first hand, and 62% of the bullies were men. A Harris Interactive poll conducted in 2011 revealed that 34% of women reported being bullied in the workplace.
Verbally Abusing, Intimidating, Harassing and Humiliating Co-Workers or Subordinates is NOT Per Se Illegal Under Title VII or Any Other State or Federal Anti-Discrimination Laws
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| Sexual Harassment Illegal |
Federal, State and Local Anti-Discrimination Laws Apply Only to Workplace Harassment Due to Sexual Harassment, or Because of an Employee's Age, Sex, Race, Color, Pregnancy, Disability, Religious Beliefs, National Origin, Gender Identification or Sexual Preference
That is so because federal employment laws only make workplace mistreatment illegal if the bullying constitutes sexual harassment, or if the bullying is based upon the bully's dislike of a co-worker' or subordinate's race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, age, disability or national origin.
While some state and/or local laws may add to the list of protected classes (for example, Philadelphia's Fair Practices Ordinance also makes discrimination based upon sexual orientation and gender identification unlawful), none declare basic bullying illegal.
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| Does Not Prohibit Ordinary Bullying |
Most of America's workers are at-will employees.
That in essence means that, subject to the protections of anti-discrimination laws such as Title VII, workers who are mistreated at work for no good reason have no protection from such abuse, nor any recourse if they are fired simply because their boss or co-worker does not like them (or likes another employee more).
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| Unless and Until Federal, State or Local Legislators Decide Otherwise, You Have No Protection From Workplace Bullying |
While bullying may certainly create an intolerably hostile place to work, it does not create an illegal "hostile work environment" under laws such as Title VII. So, if your boss is a bully to everyone (i.e. is a "garden variety bully"), it is virtually impossible to claim that you are being singled out because of your sex, race, age, disability, religion, national origin or race.
And, if you complain about a "garden variety" bully, and are fired in retaliation for making the complaint, you do not have a claim for illegal retaliation, either.
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| Illegal to Retaliate Against Employee Seeking Protection Under FMLA |
We know these are harsh concepts, but this is the way the law is set out. That is the essence of the "at will" employment doctrine. The misconception as to what constitutes a "hostile work environment" is so pervasive, that it is the first thing we Blogged about!
To make matters even worse, just because you are being bullied does not mean that you have a "necessitous and compelling reason" to quit your job so that you would be entitled to unemployment compensation in Pennsylvania. Generally, the Unemployment Referees expect you to put up with a fair amount of "bullying" before they say you are justified in quitting (wonder how they would feel if it happened to them?!).
If you are being bullied to the point of thinking you need to quit your job, try and hang in there. You may want to consult an attorney to find out about your rights before you up and quit and unknowingly sacrifice your right to unemployment compensation.
We have helped many people in dire work situations figure out a way resign from their job while preserving their right to unemployment compensation.
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