By Rakesh Malhotra, founder, Five GlobalValues

Workplace bullying is more than an occupational hazard; it is achronic corporate disease. Workplace bullying can be defined as“repeated, health-harming abusive conduct committed by bosses andco-workers.”

Prevalence of workplace bullying is evident in the finding of a2010 survey conducted by Workplace BullyingInstitute, which found 35 percent of the U.S. workforce–anestimated 53.5 million Americans–report being bullied at work,while an additional 15 percent witness it. Half of all Americanshave directly experienced it. Simultaneously, 50 percent reportedneither experiencing nor witnessing bullying. Hence, it is a“silent epidemic.”

Bullying as children is quite harmful but as adults, theprevailing attitude is that children will grow out of it.Unfortunately, many child bullies do not grow out of it. Mostcontinue bullying coworkers, employees, spouses, children andstrangers.

Read related: “Bullying:Who's Covered for the Loss?”

Recognizing a bully is difficult in the beginning stages of aburgeoning business relationship. Most bullies have a “Jekyll andHyde” personality. They portray themselves to society as polite andrespectful. They can be extremely charming in public, evenflattering their coworker's abilities. This gives the bully controlbecause they are setting up a manipulated environment in which theycan dictate their victims emotions based on a whim.

It is important to understand the signs and symptoms of a bullyin order to help the victim and the victimizer deal with andeliminate the behavior. Here are five attributes of the adultbully:

1. He or she doesn't believe in following the rules that societydictates, in any capacity.
2. A bully craves negative attention.
3. Bullies seek to put people down by manipulating and degradingthem in front of their peers.
4. Bullies seek power.
5. Bullies spread untrue rumors in the workplace, seethe withdisrespect toward their victims and refuse to listen to a victim inany capacity.

Other signs that a bully is in your midst include theirreactions to emotional situations. In spite of their intelligenceor eloquent vocabulary, bullies have the emotional fortitude of afive-year-old. If a coworker accidentally spills a cup of coffee ontheir shirt, the bully will not hesitate to throw a temper tantrum.

Bullies may also have a prejudice toward working withwomen, or with those of another faith. These people willimmediately become the target of a bully's anger andmanipulation.

What can you do?

There are currently no federal or state laws prohibitingworkplace bullying, so it may be difficult to fire a bully rightaway. And because workplace bullying cases are not covered underfederal anti-discrimination law unless the target is a member of aprotected class, employers must be careful to avoid charges ofunfair practices when addressing a workplace bully.

Read related: “WhatEmployers Should Do About WorkplaceBullying.”

However, there are still things a victim can do. The first is toknow the signs of a bully and notice if you are being bullied.

In many cases bullies are persecuting another person based ontheir religion, gender, race or other qualifying issue. Sexualharassment or persecution is illegal in the workplace andthere are legal ways to prosecute the bully. Unfortunately,general bullying is hard to prosecute because there is a lack oflegal theory and practice in regard to it.

However, there are some basic tips for employers to spot,prevent and eliminate workplace bullies.

First and foremost, employers, owners and managers need tobecome actively involved and take responsibility for creating ahealthy working environment, ensuring a culture of equality in jobselection, promotion, compensation, reward and bonus. They shouldclearly lay down the rules to provide equal opportunity foreveryone.

Employee handbooks and codes of conduct should clearly defineconsequences and punishment if someone is engaged in bullying atthe workplace. Institute a zero-tolerance policy toward bullying,with a specific list of actions to be taken if bullying isdiscovered.

There are several steps to take when it's time for you todiscipline a workplace bully. At the very first complaint, it'syour duty as an employer to sit down with the accused person, hisimmediate supervisor and someone from your human resourcesdepartment.

In some cases, when confronted, the accused will be contrite. Ifhe offers to apologize and promises never to repeat the behavior,you may wish to simply write him a reprimanding letter and store inhis personnel files. You might also inform this person that he's onprobation: that his actions will be carefully monitored by hissupervisor over the next few weeks.

When the boss is the bully

The boss may be a bully if he or she:

1. Insults coworkers (remember, one person's “joke” may beanother's insult)
2. Undermines another employee's work by creating a hostileenvironment, perhaps by consistently calling their attention totheir “flaws”? (Bullies focus on a person, while constructivecriticism focuses on a task.)
3. Ignores his or her employees' suggestions
4. Humiliates his or her employees in front of others.

In this economy, it isn't easy for an employee to confront hisor her employer about bullying. To circumvent the situation,employees must first understand whether the boss being tough or ifthere is a repeated pattern of abuse or harassment. The preferredapproach is for employees to understand their boss and “work aroundhim” if necessary.

If an employee decides to confront the boss about bullying, heor she must first have an assertive and candid conversation and askthe boss to define job expectations. Then the employee shoulddocument everything and watch the situation for a few weeks. Iifthere is no improvement, they should report the situation to humanresources.