NEW POSITION

Characters: Alison Fowler, a team leader

Members of her team

Alison Fowler was appointed to a new position as a team leader during management restructuring and obtained the position in competition with her previous manager, who she effectively “leap-frogged” in the hierarchy by gaining the new position. She encountered resistance to change in her new team, along with a lack of cooperation and loyalty. Some members of the team maintained their loyalty to their previous manager and resented the promotion of the new team leader. Several team members engaged in a variety of increasingly hostile behaviours towards Alison including:

· failing to accord common courtesies;

· failing to provide assistance during busy periods;

· constantly whispering and making vindictive comments about their team leader;

· disobeying requests;

· making offensive comments; and behaving rudely.

Ultimately, one of the team members gatherd a team meeting to which Alison was not invited and drew up a list of complaints about the worker which they presented to her boss. Alison’s boss approved this meeting and accepted the document.

Alison experienced this behaviour as harassing and undermining and felt humiliated. In the face of bullying behaviour she frequently became very emotional and withdrew from the immediate situation. As the behaviour escalated she became agitated, anxious, depressed and withdrawn. Finally she was unable to continue working for the organisation due to the development of a psychiatric condition.

CASE 9

Date: 2015-04-20; view: 810