Persisting Menace: A Case-Based Study of Remote Workplace Bullying in India

Workplace bullying refers to the aggressive behavior and mistreatment towards an employee from peers and/or superiors. When this behavior takes place frequently and for long duration, it causes a high level of stress in the employee, in turn causing direct and indirect damage to the organization. The COVID-19 pandemic precipitated a massive shift from the physical office environment to the work-from-home situation. As the face-to-face interactions between the employees were replaced by video conferencing and other technology-induced interactions, it was expected that the problem of workplace bullying will disappear or will be reduced to a great extent. Instead, the incidents of harassment by colleagues and superiors continue to be reported by employees who are working from home. Organizations are most likely to continue with the work-from-home arrangements even after the easing of the pandemic situation. In this likelihood, developing a comprehensive understanding of bullying in the remote workplace assumes vital significance. The paper uses the case study approach to explore the elements involved in the bullying of remote employees. Analysis of remote bullying incidents from various perspectives revealed that the harassment experienced by the employees in the remote workplace displays all the elements of workplace bullying. Research on the concept and manifestation of remote bullying is in a nascent stage. The study holds significant implications for policymakers and organizations.