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Health & Fitness

Dealing with Bullying - In School and Workplace.

It's time to work on ending Violence in our Schools, Communities and Workplace.

At some point, several individuals will be picked on or will have their feelings hurt by others. We all have our trials and tribulations with our kids, no matter who we are. An unavoidable part of living is finding solutions to problems, even when they are not easy or comfortable. Now let's take another step further and toss in Workplace Bullying. Can it happen? It's going on each and everyday. Like the saying goes, "Same game, just different players." According to the Workplace Bullying Institute, up to a third of workers may be the victims of workplace bullying. About twenty percent of workplace bullying crosses the line into harassment. The New York Times found that about sixty percent of workplace bullies are men, and they tend to bully male and female employees equally. Female bullies, however, are more likely to bully other females. This may be because there is more pressure on females trying to succeed in male-dominated workplace, and more competition between females for promotions. After doing research on bullying in the School and Workplace. Makes you wonder about the workplace bullying. Can a workplace bully be considered a individual who also bullied in school. Something not considered workplace Bullying: Negative comments or actions that are based on a personal gender, ethnicity, religion, or other legally protected status. This is considered harassment and, unlike bullying, is illegal in the United States and gives the victim legal rights to stop the behavior. States began adopting anti-bullying laws in 1999; today 45 states have some sort of anti-bullying measure in place. In most cases, the legislation amounts to a requirement that school districts implement anti-bullying programs on the local level. I like to call some of these "school bullying laws" Feel good policies. Majority of the time a student will become expelled and still become a community problem down the road. So its a continued circle of a failed system or bad parenting. The majority of us remember incidents involving school shootings such as Columbine, Northern Illinois, Oakland California, and so many local shootings which rarely make it to the headlines. 71 percent of the shooters are found later to had been victims of teasing and bullying. A Southern Illinois University study has shown, Workplace Violence has emerged as an important safety and health issue in today's workplace. Its most extreme form, homicide, is the second leading cause of fatal occupational injury in the United States. Nearly 1,000 workers are murdered, and 1.5 million are assaulted in the workplace each year. According to the BLS Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI), there were 709 workplace homicides in 1998, accounting for 12% of the total 6,026 fatal work injuries in the United States. Environmental conditions associated with workplace assaults have been identified and control strategies implemented in a number of work settings. Important steps as parents would be a start to see early signs. Listen to what your child has to say: Being a good listener is an important piece of your role when your child is being bullied. One of the best questions you can ask your child is, “What can I do to be helpful?” When your child tells you what’s going on at school, as much as it hurts to listen, be open and able to hear what they have to say. Try to be supportive but neutral when he’s talking. When you react too strongly to what your child is saying, they may stop talking because they are afraid it's going to upset you. How many times have we heard some parents say, "I saw the signs and did not do anything." What I find very disturbing is how viable programs to assist our youth in school, tend to be the first thing on the chopping block for budget cuts. Yet when some officials run for office, the promise to help Children and Seniors roll off their tongues like a child eating a ice cream cone. Meaning it just comes so natural to say. In the long run it hurts each and every one of us. From the Classroom to the Workplace it will start, yet end up also in our neighborhoods. We are willing to "find" funding to incarcerate and some will support for Profit Detention Centers. Yet, when many responsible and caring parents are looking for help. They are informed there is nothing that can be done until the child is in the system. My goal has been to set out to speak with local legislators and school officals about putting together a plan for our children and community future. We will not accept anymore band aid approaches, and make parent resposible for their children. Abigail Van Buren said it best, “If you want children to keep their feet on the ground, put some responsibility on their shoulders.” But I would like to add, Stay on the parents to share also.

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