Name-calling and taunting are not limited to the playground and school hallways.

Bullies can also appear in conference rooms, Zoom meetings, and office water coolers. Nearly 75 million workers nationwide were affected by workplace harassment, according to this year’s report. Workplace Bullying Institute survey.

It turns out that lawyers, who are trained to present pointed arguments and are often stereotyped – although there is also some truth – as being uncompromising and combative, are also not immune to being affected negatively through intimidation.

Here’s the proof: 25 percent of Illinois lawyers were victims of bullying last year, according to a new report from the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism. Bullying – “acts or comments intended to intimidate, humiliate, embarrass or control” – has become so severe that nearly 20 percent, or about 10,000 practicing lawyers, have left their jobs.

It is not surprising that the most bullied lawyers have similar demographics to the children most at risk: they are women, members of racial and ethnic minority groups, LGBTQ+, younger and disabled people.

Meanwhile, only 20% of lawyers who were bullied, sometimes by a judge or a senior colleague, reported the behavior to their superiors. Those who chose to remain silent did not want to lose their jobs and were afraid of being seen as “complainers” or “weak.” Sometimes harassment is even encouraged, says the Commission on Professionalism report.

Some lawyers have been told that bullying is simply an “inherent part” of the legal world and that they “should learn to accept” this notion.

We oppose it.

Lawyers should be held to “the same standards, if not higher, since they are officers of the court and advocate for justice for their clients,” as commission executive director Erika Harold told The Sun’s Amy Yee -Times.

Being resilient and able to face challenges are reasonable qualities to expect from a lawyer or any other professional. But learning to endure or express abusive remarks, excessive criticism, and ridiculously heavy workloads should never be part of the job description.

An impact on mental health, the essential

Employers and employees who think that tough guys are assets are mistaken and out of touch with reality. In fact, bullying can have detrimental effects on workers’ mental health and self-esteem. Additionally, when employees remain silent in the face of abusive behavior, they might predictably become disengaged, lose motivation, and be less productive. research showed.

Those who want to move forward also need to re-evaluate equating a tyrannical personality with success. Disagreeable people do indeed end up in positions of power, but those who are selfish, combative and manipulative were no more likely to achieve power than generous and trustworthy workers, according to a 2020 study. study by researchers at the University of California at Berkeley and Colby College in Maine.

Bullying shouldn’t be eliminated from the workplace just because it can hurt the bottom line or doesn’t align with a thriving career. Eliminate it as false. The #MeToo movement has highlighted sexual harassment. Harassment among working adults deserves the same scrutiny.

Anti-bullying policies and training, as recommended by the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism for legal workplaces, should be in place in most offices. Most importantly, employees should undergo bystander training, which has been shown to be most effective in combating workplace harassment.

There is no shortage of tyrants. When certain elected officials behave like Biff Tannen from the series “Back to the Future”, their behavior rubs off on others. It is up to those of us who view bullying as seriously unethical to speak out against it at work and elsewhere.

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