The Etiology of Workplace Retaliation

What is the origin of employer-employee retaliation? When does it begin and how does it develop? What is the frame of mind of the retaliator? How much of a victim is the target of the retaliation? Does the one suffering the retaliatory behavior somehow enable the perpetrator?

I think it is safe to say the one suffering the retaliation is the starting point of all retaliation in the workplace. Even if someone is looking for a victim to retaliate against, that victim must somehow come to the attention of the perpetrator. That is not say the victim is in anywhere culpable because he or she did something to get the attention of the retaliator. It's like a bully looking for someone to dominate; the bully must perceive someone to have some sort of weakness. This weakness can be in addition to having done something to garner attention. In the workplace, perhaps an employee stands up to a manager, which places the employee on the manager's radar. If the employee is subordinate or otherwise less influential than the manager is, retaliation might begin.

The one predisposed to retaliate must possess a grandiose self-image. The perpetrator feels and acts superior to the future victim of retaliation. Perhaps if relationship remained in this state where the retaliator feels superior and the victim accepts that fact and acts like the underling, it would not escalate to retaliation. Rather, the manager, in this case, would be secure in his place as superior to the employee who acts the part of the victim. Retaliation in this situation is not required because the hierarchy is set and both players know and accept their roles. It is almost like a grownup form of bullying. The perpetrator gains benefit from the victim's meekness and the victim keeps the "bully" at bay.

I doubt there is a single incident that sets off the retaliatory behavior; instead, it unfolds as the two play out the roles in the workplace. Since there is no defining moment when retaliation begins, the beginning might be when the victim first notices certain harassment. Maybe, the victim receives a poor evaluation that is out of character according to past evaluations.

What sets the victim of retaliation apart from the one who simply suffers bullying is the propensity to standup to the retaliator. No doubt, the future victim of retaliation did something that the retaliator perceived as threatening to his or her self-esteem. The willingness of the victim to stand up for himself triggers the retaliation. Therefore, it is actually born from a weakness of the retaliator because of the character flaw of poor self-esteem. Therefore, in a retaliation scenario both the retaliator and the victim are outgoing with respect to whatever is the matter. Hence, the victim of retaliation is not likely to feel so much victimized as treated unfairly. This feeling of unfair treatment prevents the victim from noticing the retaliation right away. He or she can't figure out why the other person is acting the way he or she is and, at first, attributes it to unfair but otherwise innocuous treatment.

Once the victim realizes retaliation is, indeed, present much water is already under the bridge. It is for this reason that the retaliator gains the upper hand early in the exchange. Once the perpetrator gains the advantage, it is difficult to ameliorate the situation after the victim realizes what is happening.

Since both the retaliator and the victim of retaliation are both headstrong individuals, the situation usually continues to escalate. Even mediation is of little benefit because neither person is willing to back down. The retaliator is usually in a position superior to the victim, which also precludes mediation because they are not considered equals. This means the retaliation continues until one or the other leaves the situation. All too often, the victim of retaliation must suffer the consequences, which is usually termination. If he or she is lucky, justice will come through the courts in the form of a wrongful termination lawsuit.