Anti-Bullying Policies Within the Workplace

In this blog I will discuss the article titled “Bullying in the Office: Why You Need a Policy”, which appeared on “BusinessNewsDaily.com” According to the article, unlike schools, “very few [workplace companies] actually have a clearly defined policy for reporting and dealing with bullying.” Jennette Pokorny, Chief Operating Officer of a human resource provider, defines workplace bullying as “any words or actions that […] make an employee feel uncomfortable, threatened, or intimidated, [… such as] threats of violence or blackmail, hazing of new employees, or [the] spreading of rumors.”  The article highlights that workplace bullying is a problem that is often overlooked because “leaders take a hands-off approach”. In fact, some workplace leaders feel that “employees should work out their issues with one another on their own time, since they are adults.” However, the article notes that ignoring the issue of workplace bullying not only creates a legal and financial liability against the company/business, it also creates the possibility of the problem escalating into something bigger, including violent retaliations.

This article highlights and reinforces two observations I have made within previous blogs. One observation is the broadness of the bullying term, in regards to its definition and the number of people affected. The article does not provide a straightforward clear-cut definition of bullying. Instead, the article lists various activities that may fall under bullying. Perhaps the pure arbitrariness of the definition of bullying is a factor that has led some people to fail to recognize bullying as a problem and has thus led bullying to be normalized. In addition, as can be seen within this article and contrary to popular assumption, bullying also affects adults. The second observation hints towards and seems to support a statement I made within a previous blog in which I stated that bullying is a “gate way” form of violence which leads to other forms of violence.

In order to guide employers the article offers three tips to help workplace leaders create adequate anti-bullying policies which include:

1.      “Clearly define bullying and its consequences. [… ] The employee handbook should […] include a detailed list of what actions constitute bullying in the workplace […] and what disciplinary actions will be taken if bullying occurs. In my opinion, this is an adequate 1^st step to make against bullying because it makes the consequences of committing bullying concrete. However, I think it will be equally important for leaders to ensure that companies implement their bullying policies. It may be that certain companies have anti-bullying prices, but fail to adequately use them.

2.      “Get everything in writing. […] Request written statements from both the victim and the accused bully, as well as any witnesses. […] Written documentation about the event can protect your company from liability or wrongful termination charges.” In the long run, this tip can prove to be beneficial, especially to bullies. For example, during a rehab program bullies may be asked to review their previous bullying action. Perhaps the aforementioned review will help deter future bullying actions.

3.      “Encourage immediate reporting. Make sure […] employees know who they can approach to report a case of bullying, and encourage workers to speak up as soon as possible.” Overall, I believe this is the most beneficial and productive anti-bullying tip because it encompasses the problems I have found and identified within bullying. This tip does not only advocate the recognition of bullying as a problem, it also advocates action. As previously stated, it may be the case that certain settings do have anti-bullying policies and people who recognize bullying actions. However it is important to keep in mind that if these people fail to act it renders the aforementioned anti-bullying policies as useless.

Throwing Away School Lunches – A Form of School Bullying

According to a news article published by FoxNews.com, a New Jersey mother has accused her local elementary school, in Galloway Township, N.J., of bullying her 10 year old son. The mother claims that the school personnel has “repeatedly taken her child’s lunch and thrown it away.” The mother acknowledges that her son’s lunch account had “become delinquent” due to unpaid cafeteria balances, however, the mother attributes the situation on her son’s “occasional failure to relay notes and messages on the issue.” According to the article, the child suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome.  Recently, a similar incident occurred at Uintah Elementary School in Salt Lake City, Utah. According to the article school officials in Uintah Elementary School “replaced […] student’s $2 lunches with fruit and milk […] because of insufficient or negative balances.” The father of an 11 year old student whose lunch was taken away by Uintah school officials believes that “young children [should not] be punished or humiliated for something the parents […] need to clear up.” Similarly, the N.J. mother expressed her belief that the issue should remain “between the parents and the cafeteria […not] between the child and the lunch lady.” 

            This article reveals how arbitrary the definition of bullying can be. Some people would argue that school officials have no right to deprive children of their school lunches and in the process humiliate them. However, other individuals would argue that “rules are rules”, and as a result, school officials have the right to deny and deprive students of their school lunches if their parents fail to pay the school lunch balances. In my opinion this scenario is an excellent example of a bullying scenario that contradicts a common assumption. Usually school officials are thought as having students’ best interests in mind. However, this article is proof that the aforementioned assumption is not always the case. Is it really in the students’ best interests to deprive them of their school lunches over fees their parents have failed to pay? What lesson are students supposed to learn, pay or be humiliated?

Signs of Autism: What to look for in the early years

Some signs of autism can very but it is important to get help, a diagnosis, and intervention as early as possible for children who are suspected to maybe having autism. 

Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by social impairments, cognitive impairments, communication difficulties, and repetitive behaviors. It can range from very mild to very severe and occur in all ethnic, socioeconomic and age groups. Males are four times more likely to have autism than females. Some children with autism appear normal before age 1 or 2 and then suddenly “regress” and lose language or social skills they had previously gained. This is called the regressive type of autism.

SIGNS OF AUTISM:

• No big smiles or other warm, joyful expressions by six months or thereafter
• No back-and-forth sharing of sounds, smiles, or other facial expressions by nine months or thereafter
• No babbling by 12 months
• No Gesturing (pointing, waving bye-bye) by 12 months
• No words by 16 months
• No two-word meaningful phrases (without imitating or repeating) by 24 months
• Any loss of speech or babbling or social skills at any age

EARLY SIGNS OF AUTISM:

• Doesn’t make eye contact (e.g. look at you when being fed).
• Doesn’t smile when smiled at.
• Doesn’t respond to his or her name or to the sound of a familiar voice.
• Doesn’t follow objects visually.
• Doesn’t point or wave goodbye or use other gestures to communicate.
• Doesn’t follow the gesture when you point things out.
• Doesn’t make noises to get your attention.
• Doesn’t initiate or respond to cuddling.
• Doesn’t imitate your movements and facial expressions.
• Doesn’t reach out to be picked up.
• Doesn’t play with other people or share interest and enjoyment.
• Doesn’t ask for help or make other basic requests.