Just like there are conflicting perceptions on the nature and extent of harassment within an organization, some people may choose to strike out against others when they believe that an important identity is under attack. This could include blaming the alleged victims or condemning groups believed believe to be making something out of nothing, are being overly critical, or are failing to defend the organization.
In this case study, all three elements were clearly present. Both men and women were quick to blame individuals they clearly regarded as ‘whiners’ who were just out for the money. Others pointed to the media and politicians, who were believed to be more likely to slander the organization than praise it. Specifically, individuals who downplayed the issue of harassment were more likely to attribute blame to politicians and media groups who were perceived to be fuelling the harassment issue and damaging the reputation of the organization. Top leaders were also called out for not standing up to external critics and defending the organization.
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I have never seen as much sexism, racism....
I have never seen as much sexism, racism, harassment, and unprofessionalism in any other organization. Greed, corruption, and selfish career advancement are terms I strongly associate to the organization. Many of our employees have disgraced themselves and this organization both publicly and in subtle, unprovable ways.
I know that the more we push for professionalism....
I know that the more we push for professionalism, harassment free workplace, respectful workplace and all the other catch phrases of the day, we are destroying the real human element of the bond between organization members. We need to stop worrying about making the whiners happy (you never can).
We do a job that can and has been very rewarding....
We do a job that can and has been very rewarding, however, the media continually malign us, politicians slander us when they have an axe to grind, and our senior management does next to nothing in defending us.
The current malaise seems to be more influenced....
The current malaise seems to be more influenced by the continued media scrutiny that keeps telling us we are dysfunctional and unhappy. We are now buying into that and an increasing societal view that someone else owes us happiness. They don’t so if someone is not happy within the organization, they should be invited to seek their happiness elsewhere. We need to quickly address conflict, harassment, code of conduct violations and there needs to be a system that promotes and allows quick resolutions. But when the common denominator to repeated victimization is the victim, we need to look at who really is the problem.