Pathological Work Victimisation in Public Sector Organisations

Abstract

Workers in public sector organisations might expect any threat to their physical and psychological safety and wellbeing to fall far short of any unreasonable risk. However, the evidence is by no means certain. One of the most persistent and prevalent organisational perils is work victimisation. A propensity towards this type of abuse in government organisations is most disturbing, since they remain a major employer, and hence, have a direct bearing on the occupational fates of a large and growing number of personnel. This paper provides a brief discussion of work victimisation and focuses attention one of its most unrepentant and enigmatic perpetrators, the corporate psychopath. The paper highlights some individual and institutional measures designed to enable employees to mitigate the risk of abuse by these victimisers.