Is COVID-19 going to kill workplace cyberbullying for good or is it here to worsen it?

Speaking about the problem.

Social and economic distress have invariably resulted in a spike in deviant behaviours in different areas of society. You can't expect an overblown balloon to not burst without making a loud sound. 

The same goes for COVID-19, which has taken the world for a downhill roller coaster ride and seems to be spilling the beans out of the can which had been rotting inside for a long time. 

One of those rotten beans being Cyberbullying, a comparatively new form of threat and form of bullying which has been active since the birth of the internet. 

Everyone at some point in their lives has encountered some form of offensive and nasty behaviour towards themselves in their workplace on account of their gender, age, physical features, abilities, etc. Which they had to deal with because they assumed it was normal or were too scared to confront it. 

Nowadays, with COVID-19 coming in, a new change has happened where physical harassment has vigorously shifted to cyber-threats like emails, text messages, WhatsApp, etc more than ever. 

Let’s explore a bit more about Cyberbullying, the psychology behind it, and how to catch hold of it. 

What is Cyberbullying and the motivation behind it?

Cyberbullying is a form of bullying where the individual uses the internet or technology to harass or threaten someone physically, socially, psychologically. 

Some of these cyberbullies are motivated by anger, the urge to take revenge for their traumas, and even with the simple motive to have “fun”.

Over the years as the internet gap gets bridged with the new developments coming in a place showing a positive outcome, a huge concern remains about the increased risk of cyberbullying and its aftermaths like suffering from mental health problems, self-harm, dropping out of jobs/colleges/schools and even leading to suicide.

Some forms of cyber-harassment which should be AVOIDED from being a part of this new normal:

• Furloughing as a form of bullying. Where managers are either forcing one to take the leave or by denying the option to be able to take it when requested for it. 

• Cyberbullying might include frequent interruptions during virtual meetings, unkind emails, and repeated and excessive emails from managers. Some employees may “hide behind their screens” and not uphold the usual standards expected of them like screaming at the top of their voice and blaming the connectivity for it. 

• Task-related bullying involves giving unreasonable and unmanageable deadlines, excessive monitoring of work, and assigning meaningless or no tasks.

• Person-related bullying which involves: 

1. Exclusion - a deliberate act of excluding someone from a group that is online or on a digital platform

2. Fraping - when a bully logs into someone else’s social networking account or email and impersonating that person by sending, posting inappropriate, or even altering content in their name

3. Intentional posting - sending of offensive, cruel, threatening, or insulting messages/content to an individual. When the employee is experiencing online harassment, their self-esteem and confidence can dive because the bully is relentless and goes to an extreme effort to cause fear and pain to the victim

4. Cyberstalking - includes posting or sending unwanted or intimidating messages to an individual that extends to making real threats to an individual’s physical wellbeing and/or safety

5. Outing and trickery- go hand-in-hand and happens when someone deliberately tricks the victim into revealing personal or embarrassing information about themselves, which is then shared publicly to humiliate them

6. A fake profile - may be created so an individual can hide their real identity to cyberbully an individual

How to deal with Workplace Cyberbully as the Victim?

@Sherri Gordon wrote a wonderful piece “11 Ways to Deal With a Workplace Cyberbully” that suggests 11 ways to handle cyberbullying at work. Here is the list:

1. Do not respond immediately

2. Keep your response calm and rational

3. Tell the cyberbully you expect the behaviour to end

4. Print and keep copies of all the harassment

5. Report cyberbullying to your employer

6. Report cyberbullying to your internet service provider

7. Contact the police immediately if the cyberbullying includes threats

8. Close the doors of communication to the cyberbully

9. Report anonymous cyberbullying

10. Take the high road. The goal is to remain calm and rational

11. Find support

Why is cyberbullying not coming under control?

Despite many strict actions from the companies and government, it’s not being possible to get rid of the problem of cyberbullying completely. Majority of the cases go unreported as: 

• The fear of being more victimized causes silence from the victim’s side

• The victims fear that the authorities will force them to withdraw complaints

• In most organizations, authoritative figures lack the moral responsibility in being strict to deal with the problem of bullying. They don’t consider the negative consequences of bullying and continue to accept it as a ritual for years to come

• Fear that they and/or their family members will be harassed and victimized

• They don’t want to ruin the careers of the “raggers”

What to do as an HR Manager?

Prudent HR managers are working hard to update policies to reflect the recent changes in working arrangements specific to the “New Normal”. These should expressly deal with the risk of cyberbullying and should be amended to reflect the changing way technology is being used. Some ways to do so is by:

• Creating changes to the organization and its culture

• Building strategies to help strengthen individual managers and leaders

• Giving support services for the targets of bullying

• Making accountability measures to coach, counsel, and discipline bullies

• Creation of a potential anonymous platform where the employees can write down their views and thoughts about threats they have faced by remaining anonymous at the same time. Something that can be integrated into the HRMS itself or a separate app focusing on employee wellness would be great too

It is high time organizations, as well as employees, need to understand that toxic atmospheres cannot keep your workplace ranks on the top for long. It is the workplace environment that decides the success and future of an organization. Irrelevant to the form and types, bullying has never borne a viable child.