An Administrator's Guide to California Private School Law

Chapter 7 - Recognizing And Preventing Harassment, Discrimination And Retaliation

Bullying behavior perpetrated by a supervisor or manager and either ignored or tolerated by upper management can be even more destructive to the effective work environment, which may impact greater numbers of workers than just the main “perpetrator” and “target(s)” in the unit. 6. W HAT S HOULD Y OUR S CHOOL D O T O P REVENT O R A DDRESS W ORKPLACE B ULLYING /A BUSIVE C ONDUCT ? Fundamental to curtailing workplace bullying is a commitment at the highest level of management that such conduct will not be tolerated. That commitment translates into the following conduct:  Ensure that mandatory harassment prevention training also includes a component on “prevention of abusive conduct;”

 Create a comprehensive anti-bullying policy, or alternatively, a Code of Conduct that defines professional behaviors and unacceptable behaviors and includes policies and procedures for response;  The anti-bullying policy must be communicated throughout the school;  Establish as a job expectation/performance standard respectful, non-bullying behavior;  Establish an awareness campaign so that staff understands what bullying is and what it may look like;  Encourage reporting;  Encourage open door policies;  When witnessed or reported, the bullying behavior must be addressed by management immediately;  Complaints of bullying must be taken seriously and investigated promptly;  Reassignment of the perpetrator may be necessary;  Discipline staff that violates your school’s anti-bullying policies or that otherwise engage in discourteous or destructive behavior toward coworkers;  Follow-up with known target to determine if bullying behavior has abated; and  Establish an independent contact for employees to report the conduct (e.g., Human Resources contact).

7. W HAT C AN S UPERVISORS D O A BOUT B ULLYING /A BUSIVE C ONDUCT ? Supervisors can intervene to build a collaborative and safe workplace by directing attention to safety and creating an environment where people can speak up and problem solve together. Steps to accomplish this include:  Publish and discuss the School’s anti-bullying policies;

An Administrator’s Guide to California Private School Law ©2019 Liebert Cassidy Whitmore 227