When you know there's something wrong

When you know there's something wrong

15 Dec 12 19:49 PM
posted by Col1967

(Copied from When you know there's something wrong, on my 'fundraiser' page)

I work in an environment where there are many colleagues from various walks of life - different nationalities, both men and women (and those 'in-between'), various sexual orientations, different tastes in music, different class backgrounds and levels of education and diffferent skills, attributes and abilities one can bring to the workplace to make a *positive* contribution.

This can include various disabilities - some resulting from workplace injuries, hearing impairments, even mental illnesses. In this instance, someone you know has a mood disorder (let's say bi-polar - formerly known as 'manic depression') - where the person has mood swings which go way beyond the usual ups and downs. Bi-polar disorder comes in various forms - bi-polar I and II, schizoaffective disorder (where the sufferer has delusions and hallucinations as well as mood swings), borderline personality disorder and cyclothymia (the milder version of bi-polar).

There has been (and still is) a number of work colleagues who have been depressed. As many of us work on the night shift, it is hard not to feel down sometimes. And the stresses associated with workplace pressures can also put a strain on peoples' moods, cause conflict/stress/anxiety, bullying, PTSD and *depression*.

But what happens when a co-worker is bi-polar or has some kind of major depression and it is obvious they are in conflict with many other people (especially those who are supervisors or managers)? This person is a good worker, and when not having an 'episode', can be nice when they want to be.

What is even harder when that same person is in conflict with other co-workers who are also your friends? There may be an incident where there is a huge *uproar* and results in battle lines being drawn. Other co-workers who are not involved initially become involved because they witness shouting, banging, crying and other noises that would rattle an otherwise 'quiet' and peaceful workplace. The supervisors tell you to 'get back to work' and that 'nothing happened' despite the fact that something has happened and everyone knows.

The person alleges they have been bullied, assaulted etc and this triggers a depressive episode. They've made so many complaints about someone else (or maybe a whole group of people even), and have felt the management have turned a blind eye. In a last desperate effort, they go to the police because they are at the end of their tether - the triggering incident is an alleged assault, taking the form of a 'near-miss' (injury).

'Eye-witnesses' usually only see snippets of what is going on or, most-likely, the tail end, where very few people (if any) see any proof that the alleged agressor actually did anything or intended to hurt the alleged target. But they know the victim or target behaves erratically?

However, does this mean that nothing actually happened just because others don't always see everything and the alleged target has a reputation themselves as a 'troublemaker'? Often, the supervisors may look like they don't care because they want everyone to do their work; but maybe they want to do something but are limited in what they can do. The same thing goes with the union and the OH&S officers. Should something be done to reprimand the alleged 'aggressor' or at least keep the target away from the aggressor? Even if the bosses, union reps and OHS reps can't do anything to reprimand the aggressor, the bosses (especially the supervisors) should at least try to keep both parties separate as much as possible. And both parties should do as much as they can to avoid each other as well (or at least if one of them comes near to the other, they should be allowed to walk away and work somewhere else).

This is what should be happening, but sometimes it doesn't and the result is a huge uproar and the alleged victim having a 'nervous breakdown'. And that's not exactly 'conducive' to either workplace diversity or to productivity.

(no) cheers,
Night Owl