Workplace harassment

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Workplace harassment is offensive, belittling or threatening behavior directed at an individual worker or a group of workers.[1] Recently, the matters of workplace harassment have gained interest among practitioners and researchers as it is becoming one of the most concerning areas of effective workplace management. In the oriental countries, it attracted lots of attention from researchers and governments since the 1980s, because a significant source of work stress is associated with aggressive behaviors at workplace.[2] The third word countries are far behind than of the oriental countries and there are limited efforts to investigate the questions on workplace harassment. Thus these countries don't becoming afforded to wedge the loss of productivity of workers.[3]

Harassment types

In a workplace, such as an office, a factory, a building, a private home, an educational institution or a store,[1] the harasser may pick any of the diversity issues to make one feeling uncomfortable. In the context of Bangladesh, the harasser commonly pick sex, religion, birthplace, age, political belief, physical disability of looks of a worker and most frequently the sexual difference and political beliefs. These two particular issues in workplace have become the critical areas of placing concentration in management of workers.

Responsibility of harassment in workplace

Harassment in workplaces is usually performed by a person such as a boss, superior, manager, director, coworker, customer, patient, delivery person or a person in a union.[1] However, the responsibility of workplace harassment is generally the offence of the human side of an organization in which the management's and administration's effectiveness is an immense part. Females mostly harassed by their clients/customers and their male workers are by their coworkers.

Workplace harassment and productivity

For organization workplace harassment can deteriorate and have serious impacts on the worker career prospects. Workers' reputations may be negatively affected due to harassment directed toward them. Aside as aforementioned, it compels an organization to experience some problems, such as:

  • reduction in worker morale
  • negatively affecting the productivity and performance of workers
  • creating defective relationships
  • absenteeism
  • labor turnover
  • lower work pace
  • poor concentration to work.

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Williams, H. (2001), Maintaining a harassment-free workplace: APC (accessed January 24:18:25, http://www.apsc.gov.au/publications01/harassment.htm
  2. Tehrani, N. (2004), Bullying: A source of chronic post traumatic stress? British Journal of Guidance and Counseling, 32 (3), 357- 366
  3. Rokonuzzaman, M. and Rahman, M. M. (2011), “Workplace Harassment and Productivity: A Comprehensive Role of Strategic Leadership”, Journal of General Education, Vol. 1, ISSN: 2223-4543, p41-49

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