The Truth About Workplace Revenge
Posted by Molly DiBianca On February 2, 2009 In: Jerks at Work
Gossip in the workplace can be a powerfully destructive force. Gossip spread by employees about their coworkers can be the result of passive participation or it can be triggered by a more affirmative attempt to cause harm to another. Office gossip is an effective method to exact workplace revenge.
What fuels efforts to engage in workplace revenge has a story all its own. A new book, due out next month, takes a close look at 
what it is that workplace revenge entails and why employees engage in such conduct. In Getting Even: The Truth About Workplace Revenge - and How to Stop It, by Thomas M. Tripp and Robert J. Bies conclude that workplace revenge is the product of individuals who feel that they have been victimized and seek to avenge justice on their own behalf. The book is the result of years of research and the various lessons learned from the nearly 500 managers and workers interviewed for the project. Pieces of the interviews are peppered throughout the book in the form of lively anecdotes.
To read more about the problems of bullies and jerks at work, see these posts:
New Conclusions on the Potential Costs of Workplace Bullying
"My Boss Is Killing Me": Why this just may be true
Comments
Posted by: Dan Feerst, LISW | May 16, 2009 5:03 PM
Every employee newsletter should periodically address the subject of bullying from an educational viewpoint with the goal of educating potential or existing offenders and having them self-diagnose.
Posted by: Dan Feerst, LISW | May 16, 2009 5:03 PM
Every employee newsletter should periodically address the subject of bullying from an educational viewpoint with the goal of educating potential or existing offenders and having them self-diagnose.