Each month, "The Balance Sheet" provides questions and answers from experts on a topic that's important to you as a manager. Please feel free to share this information with other colleagues who also manage people
Q. An employee complained of being punched in the arm by a coworker. The “puncher” said it was “in jest,” and that no violent intent was meant. My own kids do this sort of thing. There is a bruise, but some people bruise easily. Is this a matter for BJC EAP? Or should I dismiss this?
A. Violence at work is not defined by what the perpetrator had in mind. The violent act occurred, the coworker was struck and harm ensued. Just as important, you have been notified and a complaint has been brought. If you dismiss this incident, it could be established that you responded to it with negligence and apathy. If a similar incident, or something worse, were to occur in the future, how you responded to this incident could be held against you. This incident may appear to you as innocent horseplay or roughhousing, but it didn’t happen in your home. This occurred in the workplace between adults, and these facts make all the difference. Investigate properly, refer the perpetrator to BJC EAP, document how you responded, consult with a management advisor and treat the complaint with seriousness and resolve.
Q. I had an employee get angry with me and say, “Someday, man, I’m going to take you out.” I confronted the employee to get an explanation about what “out” meant. Nothing more was said. I was nervous, but should I have done more? Is a referral to BJC EAP appropriate?
A. It’s clear that you interpreted this expression as a threat to commit a violent act and reacted to it that way. This outweighs seeking clarification and deliberating over semantics to determine what was actually meant. Organizations and their policies have different ways of responding to these types of statements. Know how your organization wants you to respond, in addition to taking steps to protect yourself when you feel threatened. Err on the side of caution, immediately document the incident, discuss the matter with your advisors and make a supervisor referral to BJC EAP.
Q. Employees pick on each other in our workplace, which involves very stressful nursing care. Nastiness, irritability, passive-aggressive communication, negativity, intolerance and gossip characterize the work environment. How can we begin to eliminate it?
A. You are describing a pattern of interpersonal abuse among employees (often nursing personnel), referred to as horizontal violence (also lateral violence). This is a type of violence toward one’s peers. Characteristically, this form of bullying behavior is emotional, verbal and covert. It is fraught with many secondary risks, including the propensity toward physical violence, damaging effects to morale, increased risk to patient or customer safety and lower productivity. Reducing horizontal violence, like any unacceptable behavior, requires labeling it as such and having zero tolerance for it. Ongoing education and awareness is important and helpful in reducing it. It can be a challenge for leadership to identify these behaviors because they are frequently covert and almost indescribable. The upside is that both perpetrators and victims recognize horizontal violence when they experience it. The key is being a manager who employees depend on for dealing with it. BJC EAP can help you determine what language is helpful and effective in supporting documentation necessary to arrange a supervisor referral.