Workplace Bullying and Its Impact on Job Performance: Empirical Evidence from the Public Sector in Malaysia

Workplace bullying is a pervasive issue that affects numerous individuals across various industries and organizations. A study conducted by the Workplace Bullying Institute in the United States found that 19% of American workers had experienced bullying at some point during their careers. Similarly, a meta-analysis of studies from various countries revealed an overall prevalence rate of 14% for workplace bullying. Over the years, workplace bullying has been a huge concern among the top management. Employee’s welfare is said to be affected due to this workplace bullying. A study is conducted in Malaysia found out that 39.1% of employees from 47 companies in Malaysia stated that they have been bullied in the workplace. Workplace bullying has a direct effect on employee job performance because, when bullying occurred their work motivation will decrease. This will eventually slow down their productivity and causing them failure in delivering work performance at their full potential. This study aims to examine the relationship between workplace bullying and job performance in the public sector. A survey using questionnaire was carried out on a sample of 266 employees in a public agency. The findings showed that level of workplace bullying was medium. However, a weak positive correlation was found between workplace bullying and job performance. There was no significant difference in workplace bullying based on demographic characteristics such as gender, marital status and age. But a significant difference in workplace bullying was found for work experience. Results showed that person related bullying is the main predictor of job performance followed by work related bullying. The study provides insights into negative effects of workplace bullying on employees’ job performance in the public sector.

Workplace Bullying, Job Performance, Public Sector, Person Related Bullying, Work Related

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