What we all need to understand is that anyone who becomes a target , has suffered traumatic event(s) when they have been bullied.These people need support from their friends, union stewards, spouses, investigators, etc So here is how you can support the targeted person:
- Show empathy to the target. Show some empathy as to what the target has been through. You have to do this which shows the target that you are on their side and that you understand what they are going through. Also, I have found that an occasional hug went a long way to keeping them from the dark side of the trauma effects.
- Active Listening Let the target do the talking as much as possible, answer only when the target pauses or asks a question to you. Keep your talking as little as possible. The combination of these two things together actually create safe and supportive environment where individuals feel heard and validated is essential for healing and recovery.
- Understanding the Dynamics of Trauma: Training should educate union representatives, and everyone in supporting the targets about the psychological and emotional effects of bullying and harassment, including PTSD, anxiety, and depression. By recognizing the signs and symptoms of trauma, unions can better identify, and support affected members.
- Advocacy and Empowerment: Trauma-informed training should empower union representatives to advocate fiercely for targets experiencing bullying and harassment. This may involve providing legal guidance, facilitating access to counseling services, or advocating for workplace or educational institution policy changes.
These four items together are a necessity just for helping targets to deal with their case. When I was a steward, i did these out of caring to my members that were targets. To show my support for each target ,that I represented, I informed them that my ear was always open to them and that I expected to hear from them with questions, problems, or issues. I also told them that if I did not hear from them, that I was going to call them. I told them this for a couple of reasons. First, it was to show them that I support them for their case, Secondly, it was to keep them from getting depressed or to committing suicide over their case. Additionally, my calling them when I do not hear from them was more or less was a welfare check on them.
In addition, if I needed to, I would organize a bad boss campaign in the building. I found that these campaigns can be very successful and achieve the results in a short period of time as compared to the complaint process. Additionally, you have to get the target to agree upon this sort of campaign. Usually, since the target wants to keep the details of their case private, which leave the only the complaint process, which is an advisory process. However, the first campaign got over 800 to the Labor Relations Officer. That got rid of both the bad boss and the Labor Relations Officer who could not get any business done when all of these phone calls happened. But, with every campaign, each bad boss, was fired. Complaints were however, with appeals, could take at least you and if successful, could only end with a lawsuit, if an attorney thinks that they can win the case. But these are few and far between.
The Empathy is critical to the target. Let me say right now, the target does not seek the empathy. But it is something that soothes the hurt on the psyche. I always have Kleenex handy for them. For the women targets, would start to discuss their case and immediately beginning to cry. Emotions are so high from being targeted. The first question that they ask, it is why did this happen to me? I would then tell them that this is not your fault. From there, I would show them that I believe in them and what I am telling them.
When I have been training stewards, they told me that this was too much work and why do we have to “hand hold” these targets? The reality is that when the target has to one of these complaints, they did not realize that the steward or their representative cannot do it. Since they were not at the event and there is a question that the steward or their representative cannot answer on their behalf that is a relative question. That question is “How did this event make you feel?” In the complaint this question has to be answered for each event. Also, targets wind up re-living each one of these events when compiling the complaint. This process, being an adversarial process can have further damage to the person’s mental health.
The Bad Boss campaign does not do this damage to the target. However, with its shorter time frame, there are a minimal documents in this case. Therefore, this organizing process, there is no re-living the events that made their case. However, the union staff can take a while to get the approval of flyers and other materials that have to be used for the campaign. The union staff must approve these materials to make sure that the union is not liable for what is in the materials for the campaign. But overall, these organizing campaigns can take as much 6 months from start to finish. Although, I personally preferred the Bad Boss campaign, for the fact that it is easier on the target and that it is shorter than the complaint process with all of its appeals. But, I always directed the targets as to what to do, with the process that the target has chosen as to what they wanted to do. This is an important thing that the support of them, it gives them confidence about their case and regaining their confidence is an important thing that has to happen in the initial meeting with the target,
Understanding the Dynamics of Trauma is a critical to the understanding of what has happened to the target. This understanding will help you understand their emotional issues. This is critical in representing a target. As the reader can see, to help a targeted person it can be truly complex ways that are need to actually help the target, but if you do show empathy to them and actively listen to what they are saying, these two together will go a long way in helping a person who has been targeted by a perpetrator or bully. But consider this support as necessary to help the targeted person. This help being critical of keeping them out of the dark side with depression and suicidal tendencies. It will also keep them from developing PTSD as well. The support that is provided the targeted person early in their case, it will keep the target feeling more like normal. However, it may not stop the anxiety feelings that is normally the first symptom that comes up when the target person first feels along with shame which are typically first symptoms that appear with the targeted person. In a lot of these cases, the targeted person typically suffers in silence and does not seek help until they cannot take it anymore, Sometimes that they may wait 3-5 years after the first event and has shown nearly all of the symptoms of PTSD..
