While there are some stronger and broader laws in particular states, there is currently no federal standard defining, let alone outlawing, workplace bullying if the case does not involve harassment or discrimination of a member of a “protected status group” based on their race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, or disability. And yet, according to a 2021 survey commissioned by the Workplace Bullying Institute, 30% of adult Americans say they are currently being bullied or have experienced bullying at work, and that number jumps up to 39% for the currently employed Americans who were surveyed. That’s not a small, insignificant problem. That’s a lot of the working population. And the results also show that instances of bullying have actually increased in recent years with the expansion of remote work. But advocates are pushing legislators in different states to strengthen laws to protect workers from bullying in the workplace, and there are signs of hope concerning a bill in Oregon that would do just that. In this mini-cast, we speak with Misty Orlando, who has been the primary grassroots lobbyist for the bill, as well as Dr. Jennifer Fraser, author of The Bullied Brain, and Jerry Carbo, president of the National Workplace Bullying Coalition and professor of management at the Grove College of Business at Shippensburg University.

Additional links/info below...

• Misty's Twitter page
• Jennifer's website and Twitter page
• National Workplace Bullying Coalition website, Twitter page, and Facebook page
• Dr. Jennifer Fraser, Rowman & Littlefield, The Bullied Brain: Heal Your Scars and Restore Your Health 
• KMUZ, Willamette Wake Up, "Workplace Psychological Safety Act: Combating Bullying in the WorkPlace"
• Jefferson Public Radio, "Oregon Legislators Urged to Support Workplace Psychological Safety Act"
• Maximillian Alvarez, Breaking Points, "Max Alvarez: A DEADLY, Silent Epidemic of Workplace Abuse is Growing"
• Working People, "Happy Birthday, Evan (w/ Amy Chamberlin & Jana Murphy)"

Permanent links below...

• Working People Patreon page
• Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!
• Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page
• In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page
• The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page

Featured Music (all songs sourced from the Free Music Archive: freemusicarchive.org)

• Jules Taylor, "Working People Theme Song