Secret, targeted feedback for one team member.

Anonymous

October 11,2023 at 11:42AM UTC

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Secret, targeted feedback for one team member. One of our managers has personality differences with a member of her team that is bordering on bullying by the manager. Although the employee consistently receives positive feedback for work products from others, the manager tries to find ways to demean and reduce the perceived org value of the employee. We recently learned that the manager created a special "feedback" survey for this employee to solicit input from her peers. The form is written in a way to encourage negative feedback. The survey has not been used for any other employee, and the other employees on the team are recognizing that this employee is being singled out. This is of course leading to shunning behavior of that employee, especially in this job market. The employee has tried speaking with the manager but the manage5rs behavior has not changed. Is this discriminatory behavior?

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AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 12:29PM UTC
yes
JessOctober 11,2023 at 12:45PM UTC
Oh my gosh. This is LITERALLY the exact thing happening at my office right now. It is wild.
AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 12:57PM UTC
Of course it is but the company and leadership has allowed a survey of this type to be employed at will and in a highly select way. This has opened the company to a huge lawsuit and expose them to huge financial consequence. I hope this employee knows their rights. This sounds like a labor attorney's dream.
AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 1:52PM UTC
A lawsuit would have to prove either illegal activity (this may not be illegal), or financial / emotional costs - hard to prove.
Also, there may be something behind the scenes that justifies selective information gathering, such as accusations against the targeted employee.
AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 2:08PM UTC
In no circumstance is this legal. A survey may not be employed for a single employee. This is not a formal investigation. This is illegal. There are labor laws in place for a reason
AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 1:04PM UTC
This is so many things, but land on harassment, bullying a code of conduct violation. They need exited from the business. simple.
AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 1:25PM UTC
Oh wow! This happened to me too! I wound up quitting without hiring an attorney. In a way I wish that I had, but I just wanted out of that awful environment. It's a terrible position to be in, as no one wants to be excluded/shunned. It may be hard to prove discrimination but of course, document ALL that you can.
AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 1:50PM UTC
Yes, it's discriminatory.
Is it illegal discrimination? That depends on the laws where you work and the situation.
AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 3:06PM UTC
This sounds similar to something that happened to me a few years back. They did it as a team building exercise called Stop, Start, Continue. But it really turned out to be a bashing of me. Our receptionist managed to get one of our co-workers fired and then she started on me. It was a mess. Long story short, I don't work there anymore thank god! I would try and be that person's ally or friend if you can. Please don't sit back and ignore it, she needs support.
AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 3:36PM UTC
If your org has an HR dept. it might be best to reach out to them.
Joan Williams, Senior Talent Acquisition SpecialistOctober 12,2023 at 5:44AM UTC
I don't see how using this "survey" for one particular employee would be anything but discriminatory. How large a company do you work for? If there is a whistleblower hotline, that could be an option.
What is your HR organization like? I would think this would open the company to significant liability having a manager going rouge like this.