Board Bullying

David Yamada, University law professor and New Workplace Institute director in the USA, has stated that "Board bullying,” as he calls it, is one of the largely unexplored aspects of workplace bullying, there being minimal, if any, research carried out on the subject. However Yamada suspects board bullying is more prevalent in the non-profit sector than in the business sector, although acknowledges his view may be influenced by much of his career and volunteer service having been in non-profit organizations.

Yamada suggests there are different types of board bullying. He emphasises the importance of distinguishing instances of incivility and disrespect from targeted, malicious bullying, and suggests unintentional bullying type behaviour is often due to lack of training or instruction for board members, "when combined with the same imperfections in interpersonal skills that we see in the everyday workplace".

The first of the different types of board bullying he identifies is internal board interactions, where for example an individual member bullies and intimidates fellow board members, or "extreme variations of groupthink and peer pressure used by board members to bludgeon or ostracize other board members who take unpopular positions."

In a mobbing situation, I suggest this is likely to include deliberate lies being told by one or two trustees to mislead the board and manipulate the decision-making in favour of the perpetrator's desired outcome. Evidence I have suggests this was the case in my situation. (Mobbing is unethical and highly damaging organisational bullying, which involves overt or covert management participation.)

The second type of board bullying involves board to staff interactions — e.g. board members use excessive pressure and intimidation with staff members. Yamada suggests that "In cases of very dysfunctional and ethically marginal organizations, board bullies may be among those who retaliate against staff who report illegalities or ethical transgressions."

Again this can be seen in a mobbing situation, where staff find themselves with a choice of (1) conforming to expectations of  'the group' or (2) challenging those with power and influence, thereby knowing the likely consequences will be that they will no longer be treated as part of 'the group' and will be at risk of becoming the next mobbed target, i.e. defamed, rebranded, rejected and removed from their position.  Inevitably when people are dependent on their income to feed and keep a roof over their family's heads, few will challenge.

The third form of board bullying identified by Yamada is board self-dealing, which can include board members exerting pressure on fellow board members and staff to deliver inappropriate favours and benefits. In a mobbing situation, staff may be encouraged to participate and not rock the boat, by promises of incentives such as promotion and pay rises.

The final form of board bullying identified is sexual harassment.  The power imbalance between male and female in the charity sector is likely to increase the likelihood of sexual harassment, there being a higher percentage of males to females in senior managerial positions, and a significantly higher number of females to males being employed in non-managerial positions. In my own case, I was a female founder/CEO of the charity, and both the Board Chair and Treasurer were male. The person who initiated the malicious unfounded complaint was male and the person appointed to the role of CEO after my removal was male.

Recognising the difference between instances of incivility and disrespect on the one hand, and the deliberate malicious psychological terrorism referred to as mobbing, on the other, is essential if the charity sector is to address this issue, and reduce the likelihood of legal claims against the charity, damage to the charity's reputation and damage to the many individuals caught up in a mobbing situation.

It is time for the abuse of staff within the voluntary sector to be recognised and action to be taken to end such unethical practice. It is time for others to speak out, because by not doing so, you ensure others will be subjected to such cruelty. It is time for the Charity Commission to have a requirement of Charity Boards of Trustees to work to the highest ethical standards and ensure such standards are enforced.

With the current lack of accountability, unethical charity boards of trustees are free to continue campaigns of psychological terrorism against those they wish to remove without concern. - Next time, could it be you?

Reference: http://newworkplace.wordpress.com