Upward bullying

Barbara Relph*

If you have ever been the subject of bullying, you will know it is often about power. The most common type of bullying is when a senior person exercises power over a more junior person. In the classic schoolyard setting, this might be a younger child, weaker by virtue of their age or size, making them an easy target. There is, however the more insidious type of bullying, where the perpetrator is the subordinate.

Known as upward bullying, it is a way for the bully to retaliate against a more senior person. Upward bullying can start with one disgruntled employee and spread across a workplace over time. It is likely to be unexpected and as such commonly goes unchecked.

The legal profession

The legal profession is not immune to upward bullying. It’s a high stress environment where every team member’s actions count. Deadlines are tight and results really matter, providing fertile ground for the upward bully.

Adding to the problem, lawyers are not generally trained as managers and are often promoted based on billables or client introductions. With no skills to identify and manage bullying behaviour, the target may simply rely on avoidance as their coping mechanism. Like the schoolyard victim, the effect on the person being bullied can be serious, both psychologically and physically, affecting confidence and general wellbeing.

How it manifests

Upward bullying can manifest in many ways, passive or aggressive, and is not confined to junior staff members and their managers. It can extend far beyond that to a more senior lawyer who is unhappy with their role and who takes their frustration out on a more senior team member.

Take, for example, the common arrangement where a barrister employs a junior. The employer’s morning routine is to go to the gym and arrive at the office at 9.00am. The junior organises a client meeting for 8.30am, texting you at 8.00am saying it was the only time that suited the client. On its own, this may be acceptable, but if it happens regularly over time, it could be upward bullying.

The employer schedules much needed leave, relying on the junior to hold the reins, but they call in sick on the last day at work, denying the employer assurance that all will be well in their absence. Is this bullying, or just an unfortunate coincidence? An accusation will likely undermine the relationship with the junior, but if the junior frequently fails to attend on important occasions, the employer may have reason for suspicion.

Maybe the junior will break protocol and bypass the senior barrister to deal directly with the client, resulting in a loss of quality control and the impression that the senior is too busy, directly damaging their reputation.

Spreading rumours, failing to complete tasks, infecting other team members with their dissatisfaction, and even gaslighting to undermine their employer are all ways a disgruntled employee can bully a leader.

Why would a junior do this? The bully is usually confident and assertive with a strong sense of entitlement. They may have missed out on a promotion or reward, or they may simply believe themselves to be better than the leader. If a team exists, the potential for upward bullying exists.

Is it me?

It is largely unproductive to attempt to profile a potential target of upward bullying. It seems there are no boundaries or personality traits which make one leader more likely to be bullied than another. In the same way children are victimised by bullies, it’s always about the bully.

A schoolyard bully doesn’t necessarily grow out of the habit and change their behaviour on reaching adulthood. When they find themselves in a junior position in the workplace, their old behaviour finds a new target, and their self-assurance gives them the confidence to take on someone with greater formal power, such as their employer. That is not, of course, to say that all workplace bullies were schoolyard bullies!

Effect of covid

From a leadership perspective, new working arrangements brought about by Covid-19, such as increased work-from-home, increases isolation, reduces visibility and can break down communication channels. These factors mean the bullying is never witnessed, and any accusation relies entirely on one’s word against the other.

The pandemic brought about vast change in work practices. When a leader attempts to instigate change, the bully may push back, creating roadblocks and stymying a successful transition. This enables the bully to gain informal power within the team, having prevented an inconvenient change.

Addressing the problem

Upward bullying can have severe impacts including:

• Breaking down protocols intended to protect the business activities

• Increasing toxicity in a team and reducing productivity

• Preventing necessary change (possibly because it is a change that is not wanted by the bully)

• Causing career damage to the manager

• Causing severe physiological illness (depression, self-harm), as well as increased risk of cardiovascular and other serious physical health problems for the victim

Those who are the victims of upward bullying may be reluctant to report it as they may feel that it will place them in a negative light as being unfit to lead a team. This plays directly into the bully’s hands, by shifting the blame on to the victim, instead of highlighting the actions of the bully.

Proving claims of upward bullying is difficult. As an understanding of upward bullying in the workplace grows, concern around the effects of it on individual targets and workplace culture and productivity increases. Raising awareness of upward bullying may enable leaders to upskill so they can identify perpetrators and take action more quickly.

As with downward bullying, expedient action to address each instance of upward bullying is essential, and lessons learned from successfully managing individual cases could bring about improvements to policies and practices.

Less experienced leaders may misinterpret upward bullying as relatively harmless, in the way of a rite of passage; more experienced leaders may ignore bullying, in the hope it will wear itself out. Both responses allow the bully to extend their bullying behaviour, often resulting in a toxic workplace. Seeking support from colleagues or upskilling with specific management training are useful ways to get ahead of the bully.

Like the schoolyard, the best success will come when the target consistently and non-confrontationally calls it each time it arises.

Further reading

Doraisamy, J "Upward bullying: A trend to watch out for in law." (Lawyers Weekly, 7 August 2022) https://www.lawyersweekly.com.au/biglaw/35140- upward-bullying-a-trend-to-watch-out-for-in-law

https://theupwardbully.com/articles/what-theresearch-is-telling-us/

*Barbara Relph is a writer, editor and proof-reader – www.barbararelph.com.