Category Archives: featured

CIA Cracks Down On Bullying & Harassment

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An internal CIA document obtained by the Associated Press shows that the agency is disciplining abusive managers: 

“…These days, the CIA says it has a zero tolerance policy toward workplace harassment. And an agency document obtained by The Associated Press said 15 CIA employees were disciplined for committing sexual, racial or other types of harassment last year. That included a supervisor who was removed from the job after engaging in “bullying, hostile behavior,” and an operative who was sent home from an overseas post for inappropriately touching female colleagues, said the document, an internal message to the agency’s workforce.

The examples cited in the message, sent several weeks ago in an email by the director of the agency’s Office of Equal Employment Opportunity, were meant to show how the CIA is enforcing its strict policy. Continue reading →

New Hampshire Legislature Passes Workplace Bullying Law

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new hampshire workplace bullying legislationBack in February we highlighted union backed legislation that was pushing through New Hampshire. On June 4 it officially passed through the House and Senate.

Similar to the bill that whizzed through Tennessee, HB 0591  is limited to Public Employees and emphasizes the need to implement policies and training. We would all love to see stand alone legislation with all the protections employees deserve but this growing trend that focuses on finding ways to pass legislation has infused energy and movement into a previously stalled campaign. And, more importantly, workers are beginning to have protection from devastating psychological abuse. Union efforts in California has ensured that other states are not far behind. Hopefully legislators in New York and other states around the country will begin to adopt this winning template to protect their employees. Can private employers be far behind? Continue reading →

Tennessee Enacts Law to Prevent Workplace Bullying – But…

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SB2226: Any person injured by any act in violation of this bill will have a civil cause of action in chancery court or circuit court…When an employer or employee is found to be in violation, the court may enjoin such employer or employee from engaging in the unlawful employment practice and may order any other relief necessary, including, but not limited to, the removal of the offending party from said work environment, medical expenses, compensation for pain and suffering, compensation for emotional distress, punitive damages and attorney’s fees.  NOT!

Wouldn’t that paragraph have thrilled the hearts of all of us involved in the effort to pass abusive conduct legislation to protect employees? But, that’s not the portion of SB2226 that the Tennessee State Senate approved or the Governor signed. What they did enact “requires the Tennessee advisory commission on intergovernmental relations (TACIR), in consultation with the department of human resources and interested local government organizations, to create a model policy for local governments to prevent abusive conduct in their workplaces workplace. The model policy shall:

(1) Assist employers in recognizing and responding to abusive conduct in the workplace; and
(2) Prevent retaliation against any employee who has reported abusive conduct in the workplace. Continue reading →

Isn’t management supposed to fire abrasive managers?

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[*Note: Sulzberger’s statement pointing to Abramson’s management style as the reason he fired her was released after this article was published – link here to read it. ]

Last night I caught up with Charlie Rose’s coverage of the ouster of Jill Abramson as Executive Editor of the New York Times. Rose played a clip from his earlier interview with Abramson when she was first promoted in which she told him that she was made aware that she needed to bring “good Jill” to her new role. In 2011 – three years ago – Poynter quotes a New Yorker article that brings this concern home: Continue reading →

More Employees Cite “Incivility” As Reason For Leaving Jobs

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Even though the 2013 report, Civility in America, showed a sharp decline in workplace incivility in the last two years “there has been a 30% increase in Americans reporting they have quit a job because it was an uncivil workplace.”  This increase in job shifts is surprising because a similar decline was found by the Workplace Bullying Institute in relationship to more abusive situations; down from 13% in 2007 to just 7% in 2014. Continue reading →

California Could Be First State To Take On Workplace Bullying

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Milestone legislation requiring employers with 50+ employees add workplace bullying to already existing harassment training and education is making great headway in California. Stepping up legislation already on the books is long overdue. This bill is sponsored by Assembly Member Lorena Gonzalez and fueled by the efforts of Teamsters Local 2010, the Union of Clerical and Allied Service Workers of the University of California. Last month Union members testified at the State Capitol in support of the bill and received a unanimous bipartisan vote out of committee: Continue reading →