Posts Tagged ‘Ken Westhues’
Friday, October 12th, 2012
The founder of the international movement was Heinz Leymann. He dubbed the phenomenon “mobbing.” We imported the British term, “workplace bullying,” which followed Leymann’s work by a few years. The authoritative account of Leymann’s contributions can be found in Ken Westhues’ incomparable mobbing portal website. See his tribute to Leymann.
In the workplace, a mob consists of ordinary workers who, after deeming an individual worker a threat, collectively attack the perceived enemy. Like birds, the individual workers harm the target by collective and relentless small jabs. The mob of workers can be understood as an entity in and of itself. Once it is formed, it takes on a life of its own, even when members may question the benefit of continuing to punish the target. As an aggressive force, a mob is very different from the”toxic worker” described in bullying literature. The toxic worker is understood as an aggressive individual who willfully attacks innocent others. By contrast, the mob is a collection of ordinary workers who collectively demonize an individual and destroy him or her.
Tuesday, January 11th, 2011
It’s incredibly important for everyone to watch their chosen words in light of the tragic shooting of a U.S. Congresswoman. I will try to do so. The myopic mass media begrudgingly acknowledge that words do have consequences. However, they accept no responsibility for demanding that the only information worthy of precious TV air time is to focus on a fight between adversaries.
Thursday, June 10th, 2010
By Peter Schmidt, The Chronicle of Higher Education, June 10, 2010
This is an article describing an initiative of the American Arbitration Association, the ADR Consortium, and the Institute of Human Resources and Industrial Relations at Loyola University Chicago (Prof. Lamont Stallworth). They believe they can mitigate faculty bullying in colleges and universities. See full article and the related comments. Then read our opinion on the mix of mediation and workplace bullying.