2019-09-16
Authors
Anne-Marie Quigg
is a researcher, writer, arts consultant and lecturer. She is a Director of Jackson Quigg Associates Ltd. (UK), a consultancy specialising in Arts Management, Creative Industries and Community organisations. Dr Quigg has a BA in English and a Postgraduate Diploma in Arts Administration from City University London, where she also gained her PhD on workplace bullying in the arts. She has worked as an arts officer, administrator, and director and has been a committee member, trustee and chair of community and arts organisations throughout the UK.
Bullying and harassment in cultural organisations
Steps for employers and employees to deal with bullying
The damaging nature of bullying behaviour, which can have both psychological and physical effects, makes dealing with it in the workplace an enormous challenge. Therefore, I collected some tips for cultural organisations, followed by a few pointers for individuals who are experiencing or witnessing bullying at their workplace.
Circumstances of bullying at the workplace vary, and while some employees in freelance or casual situations have told me they have opted to grit their teeth and bear it, for those in a long term permanent job the experience of being bullied relentlessly over a period of time will almost certainly wear them down, causing considerable stress and often resulting in personal health problems.
Recognising bullying as an employer
There are a few things that can indicate bullying in the workplace:
One of these is staff who take leave of absence frequently. Although everyone is of course entitled to time off when they are sick, if you notice that an employee has begun to do this a lot, it is worth making the effort to try to establish whether there is a problem at work. It is usually better to make friendly and informal enquiries however, rather than simply implement disciplinary procedures due to the number of absences.
Another indicator of an unhealthy and hostile work environment is a high level of staff turnover. If you are struggling to recruit technicians, for instance, or if casual employees avoid returning to a company after their first experience, alarm bells should ring at the top of the organisation.
Sometimes employees will opt to make a formal complaint. Take time to give this your full consideration as it is generally not undertaken lightly. If you receive a complaint from an employee about the behaviour of another employee, listen to both sides of the story separately, not together. Give each person the same amount of time and make a record of claims and counter-claims. Work to establish if there have been any witnesses or if other people have or had similar difficulties.
Another signal that something is going wrong is when the quality of someone’s work begins to deteriorate. A stage manager in a theatre company targeted a young actor and failed to pass on essential information, such as changes to rehearsal venues and times. This meant the actor arrived late or missed rehearsals altogether, causing disruption for the director and colleagues. The stage manager claimed she simply ‘forgot’ to pass on the information to that particular individual.
In a museum setting a talented specialist curator was promoted by the board, to the displeasure of her manager and her colleague, who had failed to win the promotion. A series of problems began, not least of which the manager and colleague conspiring to take credit for her work. This situation is known as ‘pair bullying’ and often occurs when there is a sexual relationship between the bullies.
In some workplaces people who have made a complaint against a more senior employee have been moved elsewhere, while the alleged bully remains on home territory. This can be viewed as unfair to the complainant and is not really a satisfactory outcome as it does not resolve the issue.
Unfortunately bullying can be difficult to resolve to the satisfaction of all parties, although mediation can offer one way forward. Bullies will usually deny any wrongdoing and make counter-claims against the target which makes it difficult to establish the objective truth of what has taken place.
There are some important steps an organisation can take to try to mitigate the issue in advance of having to deal with it:
Step 1: Create a company policy
To establish healthy working environments, arts and cultural organisations first need to put in place a robust policy that is comprehensive and includes a section on dealing with discrimination, bullying and harassment of any kind. Where possible, taking advice from those who know and understand the field will ensure that organisations create clear, unambiguous guidelines on what constitutes acceptable and unacceptable behaviour in the workplace.
In larger cultural organisations, this may come within the remit of Human Resources departments. However, it’s worth remembering that the ultimate responsibility for making policy lies with the governing body of an organisation. Professional members of staff can, and arguably should, be asked for advice and opinions, however their primary focus is on implementation.
There are many examples of suitable policies online or elsewhere in the public domain, for example the one devised by Theatre North Inc., Launceston, Tasmania. The theatre’s policy document can be found on the company's website and dates from 2017.
Step 2: Make sure everyone is fully informed
When asked to run a training session for a cultural or community organisation I often find, as a result of further enquiries, that although staff members are involved in such sessions, those who make policy are not. In my view, this is a mistake, as board members and governing bodies also need to be clear about what bullying looks and feels like: knowledge of their legal obligations and their duty of care is vital if they are to deal successfully with the issue.
If your organisation is planning seminars or training sessions then it is important to make sure everyone is involved, from board members to junior trainees.
Step 3: Check that your policy is implemented correctly
It’s relatively straightforward to draw up a document that pays lip service to best practice. However, simply saying ‘we have a policy’ and then effectively leaving it on a shelf to gather dust is no solution. The nature of implementation will vary depending on the size and scale of an organisation and there are a few checks that might help:
- If possible, have a designated member of staff who is available to listen to other workers when they have a complaint or wish to discuss a problem. They must be equipped to do this in a non-judgemental way.
- Bear in mind that the job of the HR department, if your organisation has one, is to implement company policy — not to support a worker with a grievance. A trades union is equipped to do this, however not all arts workers belong to one or similar support organisation.
- Make sure there are clear, non-threatening communication routes available to all employees seeking a solution to a bullying or harassment problem. This means ensuring that a complaint against a line manager, for instance, does not have to be dealt with by that same line manager.
Dealing with the experience of bullying at work as an employee
It may seem like an obvious statement to make, however, the first thing you need to recognise is that what you are going through is NOT your fault. Many targets of bullying blame themselves because they are ashamed that, as adults, they have been subjected to humiliating behaviour.
Instead, try to reboot your thought processes so that you put some distance between the tactics used against you and your emotional responses. It may help to remember that bullies are generally inept at some level in their own lives — domestically, socially or in terms of their capacity at work — and that they often target someone who is popular and good at their job.
It can take some time to recognise that you are being bullied, because often what goes on can appear to be trivial incidents at the time. As behaviours are repeated however, there is a build up effect which over time becomes oppressive and destructive. You could liken this to a food intolerance, for example, which if not managed properly will inevitably make you ill.
Once you fully realise what is going on you need to prepare a record for the future. Make a note of the incidents that are evidence of bullying behaviour, preferably somewhere secure and outside your work environment. Detail what happens and who else is present, as having witnesses can strengthen your case. Sometimes witnessing bullying of another person affects colleagues almost as much as it affects the target.
One of the most difficult challenges in dealing with bullying is accurately identifying your ‘safe haven.’ Most people confide in friends and family, many of whom are supportive, although be aware that sometimes you may not be believed. In the workplace there is also the risk of confiding in someone who is unable to support you or is allied with the perpetrator. This is why HR personnel can find themselves in a difficult position, for example.
Checking out your company policies for grievance procedures is also important as it helps to have a clear idea of what lies ahead. If you feel you may need legal advice, look into the options available. There may come a point when you have to decide whether a tribunal or its equivalent is worth the level of stress you will undoubtedly endure.
Conclusion
As with the industry as a whole, it is commonplace for cultural organisations to promote respect at work in terms of abusive behaviour that focuses on race, gender, age and other similar characteristics. Generally, these are protected by law in many parts of the world. The problem with bullying, however, is that perpetrators often select targets for no apparent reason, as in no reason that seems directly connected to one of the protected characteristics.
In the end, awareness of and concern for your and your employees personal health should prevail. More than once I have advised a family member, a friend or another person who has told me their horrifying story: no job is worth the devastating effects that workplace bullying can have on your quality of life.
For more information, see Anne-Marie Quigg (2011): Bullying in the Arts, Routledge.
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