To qualify for workers’ compensation benefits, Work Injuries must arise out of and be in the course and scope of employment (AOE/COE). In order to make such a determination, Medical Professionals are often asked to describe how the injury happened.
Workplace Bullying can be a mechanism of injury. Bullying can be a source of stress and can cause or aggravate both psychological and physical medical conditions. This article will discuss Workplace Bullying within the framework of workers’ compensation.
WHAT IS WORKPLACE BULLYING? HOW DOES IT BECOME WORKERS’ COMPENSATION RELATED?
“Workplace bullying refers to a systematic form of harassment where an employee persistently and over a period of time is exposed to negative actions from others at the workplace (e.g. colleague, superiors, or subordinates) and where the employee finds it difficult to defend themself against these actions due to a perceived power imbalance between target and perpetrator.” Nielsen MB, Rosander M, Einarsen SV. Witnessing workplace bullying – protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis of individual health and well-being outcomes. Syst Rev. 2023 Jul 10;12(1):119. doi: 10.1186/s13643-023-02288-0. PMID: 37430318; PMCID: PMC10331970.
In order for Workplace Bullying to become workers’ compensation related, the bullying must cause or contribute to a workplace injury. In other words, either a mental or physical injury must have occurred. This is determined by expert medical professionals. One simply saying that they were bullied at work is not enough to make a valid work injury claim.
Further, in California, there are time limits that can bar a Workplace Bullying claim. In general, six months of employment is required to pursue a psychiatric claim of injury in certain circumstances. The nature and extent of the bullying, however, is not required to have been for a period of six months or greater. A shorter period can be shorter can suffice. Likewise, the sole cause of the stress need not be from bullying. Other workplace stressors can be included. Due to the complicated nature of these claims, legal consultation on this particular issue is strongly recommended.
HOW DOES BULLYING HAPPEN IN THE WORKPLACE?
“In a workplace context, bullying mainly involves repeated exposure to verbal hostility, being made the laughing stock of the department, having one’s work situation obstructed or being given unreasonable tasks, or being socially excluded.” Nielsen MB, Rosander M, Einarsen SV. Witnessing workplace bullying – protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis of individual health and well-being outcomes. Syst Rev. 2023 Jul 10;12(1):119. doi: 10.1186/s13643-023-02288-0. PMID: 37430318; PMCID: PMC10331970.
Examples of these incidents include an individual being in a room to sit and do no work, an individual excluded from an office birthday celebration, and an individual assigned to perform tasks below their job descriptions or responsibilities.
HOW OFTEN DOES WORKPLACE BULLYING HAPPEN?
According to statistics, bullying occurs at a rate of about 15 percent. Nielsen MB, Rosander M, Einarsen SV. Witnessing workplace bullying – protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis of individual health and well-being outcomes. Syst Rev. 2023 Jul 10;12(1):119. doi: 10.1186/s13643-023-02288-0. PMID: 37430318; PMCID: PMC10331970. Impliedly, this means that more than one in ten workplaces may have bullying issues.
WHAT ARE THE COMMON MEDICAL ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH WORKPLACE BULLYING?
Bullying is associated with a range of outcomes for those exposed, including mental health problems, somatic complaints, sleep problems, and suicidal ideation, as well as with reduced job satisfaction and work ability. Nielsen MB, Rosander M, Einarsen SV. Witnessing workplace bullying – protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis of individual health and well-being outcomes. Syst Rev. 2023 Jul 10;12(1):119. doi: 10.1186/s13643-023-02288-0. PMID: 37430318; PMCID: PMC10331970.
These reported outcomes generally fall within the emotional spectrum. Thus, in workers’ compensation, they would be addressed with a psychological claim. The other matters noted are somatic complains. Sleep, at times, can be an additional body part within workers’ compensation. Additionally, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal and some other internal medical diseases would fall within the reference. These conditions can be caused or aggravated by stress. Any assessment concerning these matters are done by expert medical opinion.
CAN THERE BE A RIPPLING EFFECT TO WORKPLACE BULLYING?
The study reported in this article advance the theory of a rippling effect. This is the theory that other individuals in the workplace can be victims of the bullying “by proxy”. In other words, bystanders may be dragged into the conflict. Nielsen MB, Rosander M, Einarsen SV. Witnessing workplace bullying – protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis of individual health and well-being outcomes. Syst Rev. 2023 Jul 10;12(1):119. doi: 10.1186/s13643-023-02288-0. PMID: 37430318; PMCID: PMC10331970.
In workers compensation, actual events of employments can be used factors to be considered in determining a psych related injury. Thus, whether or not there is a significant rippling effect does not matter.
WHAT IS I NEED LEGAL ADVICE?
If you would like a free consultation regarding workers’ compensation, please contact the Law Offices of Edward J. Singer, a Professional Law Corporation. We have been helping people in Central and Southern California deal with their workers’ compensation cases for 30 years. Contact us today for more information.