What is Mobbing at Work and How Can It Be Prevented?
Australians’ working styles have evolved significantly over the years. For instance, many Aussies work from home (WFH), enjoy flexible working arrangements, and embrace digital nomadism. These trends represent a significant paradigm shift in how people work nowadays.
On the other hand, negative working trends have also emerged, including workplace bullying or mobbing. Many mobbing victims feel overwhelmed due to coping with office harassment from multiple co-workers daily. Hence, they think they’re stuck in a harsh and hostile work environment, with no hope in sight.
If you’re struggling with workplace mobbing, know you’re not alone. As a trusted provider of premium, cost-effective Brisbane executive coaching solutions since 2018, our expertise can help you conquer workplace mobbing, seek creative solutions, and rejuvenate your career.
This blog will explore mobbing at work, its signs, causes, and effective prevention strategies, helping you take proactive steps and promote a healthier, collaborative workplace.
What Is Workplace Mobbing?
Workplace mobbing occurs when several individuals consistently and systematically harass a colleague through aggressive, hostile behaviour. This form of psychological harassment intends to demean, discredit, and ultimately compel the victim to leave his role or the company.
Workplace mobbing can include the following actions:
- Gossiping
- Spreading rumours
- Ignoring the victim completely
- Undermining the victim’s work
- Verbal or non-verbal aggression
How Are Workplace Bullying And Mobbing Different?
Although workplace bullying and mobbing are related, they are not identical. Knowing their differences is critical for organisations to determine the appropriate intervention strategy, defuse tension, and improve workplace harmony and collaboration.
Workplace bullying
In this scenario, an individual (usually a manager or colleague) consistently directs hostile, harmful behaviour toward another person, creating a power imbalance.
Examples of workplace bullying include physical violence, intimidation, humiliation, exclusion, and excessive criticism.
Workplace mobbing
In contrast, workplace mobbing involves a group (usually several co-workers or an entire team) targeting an individual. Although it’s a form of bullying, many individuals act together intentionally or through group dynamics.
This form of harassment usually involves threats and behaviours to create an intimidating workplace environment for the victim. Oftentimes, workplace mobbing escalates quickly than workplace bullying and can be more damaging.
What Causes Workplace Mobbing?
Understanding the causes of workplace mobbing empowers organisations to eliminate verbal aggression, emotional abuse, and hostility, prioritising integrity and accountability while fostering a collaborative, harmonious work environment.
The causes of workplace mobbing include the following:
- Organisational factors: Toxic work environments, poor management, abuse of power, and job-related stress (mergers, layoffs, or demotions) can lead to workplace mobbing.
- Individual factors: Jealousy, competition, insecurity, dominance, personality traits, and discrimination can trigger workplace mobbing.
- Lack of trust: Distrust and scepticism among colleagues can trigger unfair targeting and resentment.
- Group dynamics: Peer pressure and the desire to embarrass or scapegoat an individual can lead to workplace mobbing.
What Are The Signs of Workplace Mobbing?
Workplace mobbing is an alarming and negative trend that involves a pattern of bullying and harassment in Australian organisations. Understanding the signs of workplace mobbing empowers organisations to take proactive steps in eliminating this harassment tactic and encourages a harmonious, efficient, and principled work environment.
Repeated abuse
This form of harassment occurs when a group behaves and acts in a hostile and aggressive manner toward a targeted individual, aiming to instil fear and insecurity.
Knowing the signs of workplace mobbing can help you identify issues early, enabling you to protect yourself, act promptly, and enjoy peace of mind.
Constantly blaming a single individual
Unfortunately, some groups or teams unfairly blame an individual for something he did not do or a mistake he did not make. Sometimes, the culprits insist that the individual is the reason behind their failure.
Workplace psychologists and consultants consider scapegoating a form of bullying, negatively impacting the targeted individual. If you are being treated as a scapegoat, you’re not alone. Consider speaking up and informing your manager or other colleagues that you’re innocent.
Excluding and isolating certain individuals
As the term implies, this involves a group or a team making an individual feel alone, by excluding them from important team tasks, possibly leading to anxiety or depression. People can isolate a person from a project or social interactions, as well as make him the subject of scandalous rumours or gossip. Although isolation often doesn’t involve verbal abuse, people can still act hostile toward an individual.
Persistent isolation may significantly affect an individual’s mental health. If your colleagues are isolating you at work, consult a trusted friend or family member. Alternatively, talking to your manager can help rectify the situation and end isolation, which is unacceptable workplace behaviour.
Publicly shaming an employee
This is a form of emotional abuse and bullying that targets an individual and seeks to diminish his self-esteem and confidence.
Examples of public shaming can include ridiculing someone in front of others, blatantly passing over a deserving employee for a promotion, or receiving duties that don’t match one’s abilities.
If you or a colleague is being shamed by several people, take swift action. Your company can intervene appropriately, file legal action against the offenders, and end workplace humiliation.
Intimidating a staff member
Although workplace intimidation is common, identifying specific incidents can be challenging. This form of workplace mobbing includes threats, forms of aggression, subtle coercion, and verbal manipulation.
As experienced providers of Brisbane business mentoring solutions since 2018, we recommend documenting the incident and consulting a trusted colleague or supervisor. They can help document the incident, intervene, and provide you with peace of mind.
Establishment of a hierarchy of control
In this scenario, supervisors, managers, and other leaders display assertive behaviour that undermines others. They use their positions to disparage and belittle their subordinates, making them feel awkward and uncomfortable.
If you’ve witnessed senior staff members openly abuse junior personnel in your office, you can prevent them from escalating and affecting your colleagues. Your HR department can improve its training programs on effective and healthy leadership and strengthen employee relations processes, minimising power dynamics and fostering a collaborative workplace culture.
Using violence
Violent workplace groups seek to intimidate and scare the victim with physical means. Consequently, they create a hostile work environment that may compel the victims to resign and seek employment elsewhere.
You should never tolerate workplace violence. Ask your HR department to develop clear workplace violence policies, provide training and support, and encourage reporting to encourage a harmonious, peaceful work setting.
Manipulating other personnel
In this scenario, a group influences or controls co-workers, subordinates, or superiors in a deceiving, self-serving manner. They use misleading information, leverage their positions, and conceal critical details to achieve personal or organisational goals.
Promoting transparency, clear communication, accountability, and strong leadership can prevent workplace manipulation, providing employees with a sense of security and peace of mind.
Sexual harassment
This is verbal, non-verbal, or physical behaviour with sexual undertones that degrades an individual. Examples of sexual harassment include the following:
- Making sexual comments about a person’s physique
- Making sexually suggestive gestures
- Touching another person without consent
- Showing sexually-explicit photos or videos on a phone or computer
- Sending sexually suggestive emails or text messages
- Asking for sexual favours or dates
Your organisation must take proactive steps to prevent sexual harassment, including training, awareness-raising, clear policies, reporting channels, and support for victims. These interventions ensure a workplace that fosters respect, accountability, and integrity.
Conclusion
Workplace mobbing is a negative trend in which a group or team harasses an individual through aggressive, hostile behaviour. Its signs include consistent abuse, scapegoating, isolation, humiliation, intimidation, power dynamics, violence, manipulation, and sexual harassment.
Taking proactive measures to minimise and prevent workplace mobbing encourages a healthy, peaceful, and collaborative work setting. The challenge for managers and supervisors is ensuring their teams set aside their differences to achieve a common purpose. Implementing the appropriate interventions can help them achieve these goals and provide peace of mind and security.
Tony Meredith Coaching is a trusted Brisbane business consultant that has provided organisations in Australia with premium, cost-effective coaching solutions since 2018. Contact us today to schedule an appointment and discover high-quality business coaching programs that guarantee results.
