Here are a couple of thoughts from my book titled “How to stand up to workplace bullying and take on an unjust employer”.
I firmly believe that there are many changes that need to be made with our current employment legal system. After reading my book and hearing the sordid details of my case; I imagine people will widely question why my employer in this story engaged in such maltreatment and how so much negativity and disorder was able to thrive, seemingly out in the open, at this particular establishment. In fact throughout this case, I myself have questioned many times why presumably educated managers repeatedly subjected themselves to such unnecessary risks and liability. However, I do believe the answer to these questions is far more simple than complicated: NOBODY IN AUTHORITY BELIEVED FOR A MOMENT THAT AN EMPLOYEE COULD SUCCESSFULLY STAND UP TO THEM.
But WHY would the managers in this organization have been of this particular opinion, one might choose to question, and what role might our employment legal system have in promoting this belief in an employer? While many of the issues from this story are unique to this employer’s environment, I believe that too many employers take for granted that employees will not stand up for their basic rights. And perhaps even more unfortunate, is the fact that far too many employees also believe that they cannot dare to assert their basic rights with their employers! This especially rings true in today’s tough economy, where nobody wants to do anything to potentially jeopardize their job security.
And when I was in need of witnesses to support my case, the majority of those I contacted did everything they could to not be involved in this matter. I am once again reminded of a statement commonly spoken by one of my coworkers, “Remember, it is not our place to question things, to ask the question ‘why’ or to try and bring about change.” It is this widespread belief among employees which causes so many arrogant employers to believe they are invincible.