Workplace revenge

Workplace revenge refers to the general action of purposeful retaliation within the workplace in an attempt to seek justice. Acts of revenge in the workplace are viewed by the retaliator as a defensive act in response to the offender’s unwarranted and unfair actions. When the offender makes the first move that is viewed by an affected colleague as unjust, the victim will often feel a need for retaliation.

Revenge is defined as the infliction of harm in return for perceived wrong. Workplace revenge is often initially considered a violent act taking place between colleagues within an organization. However, this type of revenge within an organization is often nonviolent and legal. Workplace revenge often consists of silent and non-confrontational acts that directly affect the other person. Some examples include decisions to work more slowly, refusals to help the colleague, or ignoring tasks set forth by the offender.

When an employee thinks his manager has not effectively handled unjust acts, he may feel the need to take matters into his own hands. Furthermore, many employees shy away from using the voice strategy to bring unjust acts to the attention of their superiors in fear or retaliation from either the manager or the organization as a whole. It can be deemed necessary by the victim of the initial unjust act to retaliate with either one act of revenge or several acts in order to create a level playing field. Forms of confrontational revenge include reporting the offender’s mistakes to a superior (beyond the initial unjust act) in an attempt to ruin the offender’s reputation, quitting, or getting others fired. In general, workplace revenge is about justice, restoring the balance of what is, or what is perceived as, fair. Employees that engage in acts of workplace revenge are not unprofessional or out of control employees seeking a major vengeance against the company, but rather the victims of interpersonal conflicts within the organization who are compelled to seek justice by their own means.

Retaliation within an organization, specifically between colleagues, rarely impacts the organization significantly. However, the activity of revenge has a direct correlation with de-motivating employees as well as affecting productivity, therefore affecting the company’s bottom line. It is also an indicator that there is a problem that could possibly grow from a disagreement between two employees (whether confrontational or not) to a drop in retention rates and loss of otherwise productive employees.

For every eight employees who see themselves as the targets of revenge, one is likely to exit the organization entirely. One way to combat revenge within the organization is to implement exit interviews. This is a way that companies can gain true, raw knowledge of what is really taking place within the organization, often because the exiting employee is no longer censored by a fear of possible organization retaliation.

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Wikipedia