The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, commonly referred to as OSHA, obligates employers to maintain a safe and healthful work environment.
OSHA’s website states:
“OSHA’s mission is to assure safe and healthful workplaces by setting and enforcing standards, and by providing training, outreach, education and assistance. Employers must comply with all applicable OSHA standards. Employers must also comply with the General Duty Clause of the OSH Act, which requires employers to keep their workplace free of serious recognized hazards.”
When most of us think of OSHA, we think hard hats, proper storage and disposal of hazardous substances, and prominently displayed Exit signs. We certainly don’t think about psychological or emotional health, because OSHA doesn’t cover that.
And more’s the pity, because many employees are regularly abused in their workplaces, and these poor souls could use some protection.
Make no mistake, however. The employers of mistreated workers are taking it on the chin, too. Workplace aggression comes with a huge price tag.
Emotional abuse defined
Healthy Place defines emotional abuse as “any act including confinement, isolation, verbal assault, humiliation, intimidation, infantilization, or any other treatment which may diminish the sense of identity, dignity, and self-worth.” Among the list of abusive behaviors listed on their website is “unreasonably ordering an individual around; treating an individual like a servant or child,” which is a classic tyrant behavior.
The “hidden” cost of workplace meanies
Listen, I know some are uncomfortable with labels, but bullies, narcissists, and tyrants have earned their moniker fair and square. These are not folks having a bad day. Their unconscionable behavior is persistent, without justification, and highly damaging.
Direct bottom-line costs associated with workplace emotional abuse include:
- Increased absenteeism
- Increased presenteeism
- Increased use of medical and disability plans
- Legal fees
- Severance payouts to targets
- Recruiting fees related to increased turnover
One study put the annual employer cost at $250 million.
Keep in mind that the target isn’t the only affected party; witnesses to the abuse also suffer.
Emotional health is nothing to sneeze at
A recent article in Workforce magazine boldly stated: “Mental illness is the workplace’s dirty little secret. Employees want to hide it and employers don’t want to hear about it.”
According to the article, mental health conditions costs employers between $80 and $100 billion in lost productivity each year.
While someone who’s become clinically depressed following emotional abuse in the workplace may not have a mental illness per se, the Workforce article remains relevant, because targets of workplace abuse often present to healthcare providers in emotional distress, boasting anxiety, sleep disturbance, irritability, and feelings of worthlessness and hopelessness, and well as the aforementioned depression.
And like anyone experiencing signs of psychological upset, these employees are keenly aware of the stigma attached to mental illness. They may also fear their employer’s hostility toward a claim of emotional distress caused by workplace abuse. This awareness and fear, as well as shame at “allowing” themselves to be abused, prevents some employees from pursuing the help they really need.
What to do?
Employers must resolve to both identify and address abusive behavior at work. If compassion for employees is no incentive, the ginormous associated costs should be.
Employers must also work to remove the stigma of mental illness. It’s absurd in this day and age, with all we know about the mind-body-connection, for employers to deny that sometimes employees will have emotional issues that require attention. There should be no shame in it.
Learn more about aggression in the workplace and how to deal with it with this complementary whitepaper: Incivility and Other Types of Workplace Aggression
How about if the employer is the one emotionally abusing their employees? What do you do in this situation?
Having worked for a major oil company in the US for many years this type of behavior is prevelent in the rank and file population and continues even now. A company can promote a hostile free work environment but unless front line managment and middle management are accountable for ensuring it is practiced and the “good old boys” are held to the same standard this type of abuse will continue. Having said that, it’s just as important for rank and file to know and understand what this type of abusive behavior looks like and how it presents itself in the… Read more »
As an employee of a State Agency, rank and file and some managers are treated this way every day. Some Managers and Supervisors abuse their power on a daily basis. If he/she doesn’t like you even though you are an outstanding employee, with the snap of their finger you’re gone. He/she uses this power in a way that other employees see it and are afraid to stand up for themselves or others because it will come back and happen to them. Management pushes training in ethics, workplace violence, sexual harassment etc. and the reality is they don’t follow their own… Read more »
You’re doing your message a disservice by lumping “mental illness” in with workplace abuse. People who suffer from mistreatment at work aren’t mentally ill — they’re mentally injured. Receiving justice and compassion would go a long way in helping them recover from intentionally injuries their abuser inflicted, while labeling them “mentally ill” just opens them up to further shaming and blaming for their tormentor’s abusiveness.
It has been my professional experience that Human Resource departments promote drama. They feed the “grapevine”. It is their job to listen and hear what goes on in a company and report to upper management as necessary to assist with managing potential unpleasant situations among employees. When HR feeds the grapevine, or goes to upper management demanding that upper management promise not to talk to another employee about what was said or they won’t tell them, that’s cutting off communication, unprofessional conduct, and plain abuse. Nowhere have I seen this addressed. Workplace health extends all the way up the food… Read more »
I feel do to many “at will” states, people do not see what can be done about this. Even though osha can investigate bullying, the managers can also scare the heck out of employees for standing up for themselves. Employers need to see that people should NOT be treated this way. They need to be proactive about this, realizing this is not just bad for business but says the company does not care about the people that make them money. If filing complaints with OSHA is what is needed to be done, then so be it. Companies will not think… Read more »
I work for a boss that is mentally abusive and she also owns the company. When talking to other employees they all say she is the same with everyone. She is constantly telling me to move faster or I take to long to resolve issues…that I need to ask for help…but when I ask her for help she calls outside resources. She wants 40 hours of work done in 20 hours and when I try to talk to her about not having enough time to get things done she compares me to others and I have even shown her how… Read more »
I went to human resoureces about being harassed and threanted by employees and end up being fired for sexual herassment. I have names and phone numbers of employees that will that I wasnt the only one joking around.