As anyone who’s ever worked in a large organisation knows, an enormous range of different personalities and characters can be found in the workforce, and a certain proportion of them have mental health issues of one sort or another.
On a psychological level, the workplace can seem like a thicket teeming with anxieties, stress from a thousand sources, egotism, distorted thinking, warped perspectives, weird preoccupations, alienation, irritation, resentment, and narcissism. Inevitably, people with personality disorders can unintentionally generate stress for their co-workers and managers.
The ‘corporate psychopath’ is a familiar archetype for many in the world of work. This is the person with the focus entirely on his or her own power, who is ruthless, manipulative, lacks empathy and shows complete disregard when trampling the careers and professional self-respect of others.
The ‘narcissistic sociopath’ may also ring a bell, charming those above them on the corporate ladder and bullying those below, possibly with a delusion of sexual entitlement to impose on others.
The ‘relentless incompetent’ can also appear to have lost touch with reality, so little do they seem to understand beneath the façade of knowledge and the ability to ‘talk the talk’ or exploit connections.
Then there are those who, more often than not, seem moody, anxious, irritable, or angry, take offence too easily, and clearly suffer from low self-esteem.
For a manager or employer, these types of personalities – and a host of others – can create a challenging environment.
WORK HEALTH AND SAFETY RISKS
The perception of a ‘difficult person’ can create challenges for management and colleagues if their job performance is unsatisfactory, or perceived to be so in the eyes of their co-workers, managers and subordinates. ‘Dealing with difficult people’ is a regular theme in management courses, but managers often face impediments, obstacles and frustration when trying to put the theories into practice.
The time spent on counselling, negotiating, drafting documentation, close supervision and other aspects of the effort to help a 'difficult person' improve their job performance takes away from the time available to deal with other elements of the manager’s role, creating work intensification pressures and more fiercely competing priorities. This in turn pushes the person to put in more hours of work, compounding whatever work-life balance difficulties they already face.
Any evidence of corruption, unethical behaviour or other corporate or professional wrongdoing can also generate high levels of anxiety in colleagues or employers who must either decide what to do about it or find some way of coping with its impact. A need to confront someone or deal with grievances can be onerous and stressful for a person who does not enjoy confrontation, and the need for confidentiality can limit a manager’s scope for debriefing or warning others.
These and hundreds of other scenarios can be a source of emotional and psychological irritation and torment that plunges a manager into a distressed and alienated state.
EMPLOYERS’ RESPONSIBILITIES
The duty of care still applies, however, and if the work or the workplace is adding to the stress for an individual with a personality disorder, or if that person is making work stressful for others, the employer needs to take whatever steps are reasonably practicable to alleviate the problem.
The initial focus should be on what can be done to help resolve particular workplace issues. It may help to provide more training or support, or to seek input from staff as to aspects of work systems that could be improved or procedures that could be fine-tuned. If people’s suggestions are listened to and acted upon, it will help to make them feel their contribution is valued.
The workplace culture could also be amenable to change, especially considering that the attitudes and behaviour of top management can have such a profound effect on the general tenor of workplace interactions. Even small changes such as passing on positive feedback from clients, praising good work, or celebrating the birthdays and accomplishments of every single staff member, can have a beneficial impact.
It might also help to initiate general workplace health promotion programs that emphasise mental well-being as well as physical health. Morale-boosting measures reportedly include corporate massage opportunities, game days, giving employees time off to pursue other interests, inviting motivational speakers, and even providing free blood pressure checks. Even a simple charm campaign to reinforce the value of civility and respectful interactions may be useful.
If general, broad-brush efforts do not improve the situation, it may be appropriate to refer particular individuals to employee assistance programs.
Need help with your WHS responsibilities?
These templates and documents on My Business Workplace will help you comply with your WHS responsibilities.
Gaby Grammeno Contributor
Gaby has extensive experience as a researcher, writer, editor and project manager on a wide variety of information products, including books, guides, reports and submissions.
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