There’s one group most likely to get bullied at work

If we were to create a workplace bullying target persona, she would be a 42-year old, college-educated, full-time, non-supervisory, non-union worker in healthcare, education, or the government.

Workplace bullying targets are most often motivated to help others — the do-gooders, healers, and helpers who are kind, giving, altruistic, and collaborative. And this mindset generally falls along gender and industry lines.

Collaborative work environments are proven to be not just healthier for employees but also for organizations’ bottom lines.

Nursing and teaching: rampant with bullying
What’s more dangerous is that in the nursing and teaching professions, bullying has become normalized and trickle down to patients and students. When higher-ups demean nurses and teachers, patients and students suffer. They also feel permission to also demean nurses and teachers.

Government: the third-ranked industry
Poorly trained supervisors are the major problem in this sector. They lack the skills to treat their employees like humans and instead put their egos first to mask their incompetence.

Workplace bullying targets don’t always fit this mold
Workplace bullying targets aren’t only educated, non-political, altruistic women in their 40s. Respondents came from various walks of life: men, white collar workers, blue collar workers, non-educated, supervisors, and managers. The only common trait among targets is that their competence poses a threat to insecure perpetrators.