Workplace bullying has become an all-too-common problem. Take the supervisor
who resorts to name-calling when dealing with subordinates or the worker who's
quick to blame others, loudly, for mistakes.
The negative impact such behavior can have on workplace morale is obvious.
But there's another risk from bullying that may not be so apparent: sex
harassment lawsuits, even if the offender never made a sexual comment or groped
a female employee.
A recent case from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals illustrates this problem
(EEOC and Christopher v. National Education Association, U.S.C.A. 9th
Cir. No. 04-35029 (2005)). The National Education Association-Alaska (NEA),
a labor union in Anchorage, was sued for sexual harassment when employees Carol
Christopher, Julie Bhend, and Carmela Chamara claimed NEA Executive Director
Thomas Harvey frequently shouted at them in a loud and hostile manner and was
often profane in public. His conduct allegedly also had a hostile physical component.
For example, Bhend said Harvey lunged at her across a table during a meeting
and shook his fist at her. The women charged that Harvey's behavior was
highly intimidating to female employees.
NEA asked the court to dismiss the case because, it argued, Harvey's alleged
misconduct wasn't of a sexual nature. But the 9th Circuit, which covers
California, said the women's case could go forward. Even though Harvey's
behavior wasn't on its face sex- or gender-relatedhe didn't
make sexual overtures or lewd comments, refer to women employees in gender-specific
terms, or impose gender-specific requirements on women employees his conduct
could still amount to sex-based harassment if his treatment of women differed
sufficiently in quality and quantity from his treatment of men.
Although male employees reported that Harvey was at times hostile and aggressive
toward them, most incidents weren't of comparable magnitude to those reported
by the women. Plus, there was no evidence that male employees had anywhere near
the same severe reactions such as crying, panic, and feeling physically
threatened to Harvey's conduct as the female employees experienced.
What to Remember
This case shows that if women receive the impact of a male employee's
bullying (or vice versa), the misconduct may be sexual harassment, even if the
other gender is also affected by the perpetrator's actions. Determining
when bullying crosses the line into harassment can be a tough call, but here
are some tips to help fend off problems:
- It may be easy to dismiss bullying charges as mere employee griping. And
if a top performer is the culprit, management may be even more reluctant to
take strong action. Yet it's important to check into all complaints to
see if a persistent underlying problem needs to be resolved.
- Regardless of whether the bullying amounts to illegal harassment, you need
to address the situation. You could, for example, call in an outside conflict
management consultant; refer the aggressor to your EAP; require group sensitivity
training; and impose stiff warnings and discipline. But use caution and maintain
good documentation before taking action against a workplace bully, as an aggressive
employee may be more likely to sue you.