Tag Archives: nonprofit

Workplace Bullying: Does it Happen?

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Yes, it does! Unfortunately, workplace bullying is a reality in our society and an issue that has been studied by Drs. Gary and Ruth Namie. The couple started the Campaign Against Workplace Bullying in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1998.

The campaign led to the creation of a U.S. bullying telephone crisis line that helped over 5,000 people, bringing media attention to the initiative. In 2002, the initiative became the Workplace Bullying Institute (WBI). Today, “WBI remains sole North American nonprofit organization dedicated to the eradication of Workplace Bullying through education and research” according to the institute’s website.

What is workplace bullying?

The definition of the term, according to the institute is “repeated, health-harming mistreatment of one or more persons (the targets) by one or more perpetrators that takes one or more of the following forms: Verbal abuse; Offensive conduct/behaviors (including nonverbal) which are threatening, humiliating, or intimidating; Work interference — sabotage — which prevents work from getting done.”

According to the Washington State Department of Labor, “workplace bullying refers to repeated, unreasonable actions of individuals (or a group) directed towards an employee (or a group of employees), which is intended to intimidate and creates a risk to the health and safety of the employee(s).”

Bullying is considered different from workplace harassment which is officially described as “one type of illegal discrimination and is defined as offensive and unwelcome conduct, serious enough to adversely affect the terms and conditions of a person’s employment, which occurs because of the person’s protected class, and can be imputed to the employer.”

Workplace Bullying Statistics

WBI website presents studies that show staggering statistics about the occurrence of workplace bullying:

  • 35% of all adult Americans reported either being bullied now or at sometime in their careers (an est. 53.5 million Americans)
  • 62% of bullies are men; 58% of targets are women
  • Women bullies target women in 80% of cases
  • Bullying is 4X more prevalent than illegal harassment (2007)
  • The majority (68%) of bullying is same-gender harassment
  • Only 1.7% of cases was the bullying complaint resolved following an investigation targets considered fair; providing safety for the target and justified punishment for the bully. Employers are still “do-nothings.”

Workplace Bullying Laws

Workplace bullying is NOT yet an illegal practice in the United States, unless it is considered harassment as previously described. However, both the Workplace Bullying Institute and the Department of Labor encourage employees to take action to stop the bullying. These include:

  • Keeping a diary with details of the bullying
  • Keeping copies of incriminating emails and paper communications
  • Report the behavior

From Intern to Manager at the Union Project

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Here at the RIC we are no strangers to the benefits of internships. We know that by hiring individuals with internship experience, an employer can increase the efficiency of their organization and lower costs associated with turn over. Students stand to gain real world experience from working professionals, while building their resume and networking in their field. But once this initial connection is made, what can a student do to get the most out of their internship?

I had the chance to talk with Katrina Struloeff about her role as an intern with the Union Project and hear about how she successfully turned her Internship experience into a full time position as Marketing and Development Manager at the Union Project following her internship.

(RIC) How did you find your internship with the Union Project?

Katrina: Finding my position at the Union Project was definitely a situation of exploring a city and seeking out a position that I wanted. I actually approached the leadership at the UP asking if they would consider me for an internship position. I offered my resume and listed all of my experience. Coming into the situation at the time I was hired as an intern allowed me to learn about, and experience first- hand all aspects of a small and growing non profit organization.

(RIC) What were some of your main projects as an intern at the Union Project?

Katrina: I was basically put in charge of designing a marketing and communications plan and then implementing that for the organization. As the Marketing Intern my daily activities ranged from creating an overall plan, to doing outreach to neighbors, to designing promotional materials, to updating the website, to answering phone calls and fielding questions to event support.

(RIC) Did you anticipate your internship experience turning into a permanent full-time position?

Katrina: Honestly, I began my internship with one goal, to experience something new in the community while involving my passions. At the time of beginning my position I wasn’t sure if I would be staying in the city of Pittsburgh or moving back to the west coast. As the time approached for completing my graduate degree, I was honored to be offered a full- time position at the Union Project.

(RIC) What are some specific ways you think your experience as an intern has helped you?

Katrina: My experience as an intern has been invaluable. Yes, that is the obvious answer, but it is also the truest statement I can make. Through my position I was able to not only experience and learn about a community and its needs, but also to build relationships across the city and eventually the country. The interaction with [Union Project] partners allowed me to get my name in people’s minds and eventually led to my new position, board and committee appointments as well as amazing friends and mentors. It was also a practical and intensive testing ground for my design, public relations, and nonprofit trainings. I could go on for pages about the lessons I learned.

(RIC) What advice would you give to a someone who is looking to make the most out of their an internship experience?

Katrina: The best advice I can give is to seek out what you want and inform internship sites of your end goals. If they have those in mind you can shift some of the learning experiences to be as helpful as possible and have more impact on your future.

Also, don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Everyone has made mistakes to get where they are and often, if you are putting in your full effort, mistakes can lead to new solutions. Finally, push your supervisors to have honest and productive evaluations with you. An internship is about learning for both you and your internship supervisors.

After working with the Union Project as Marketing and Development Manager for two years, Katrina has accepted a position as Public Relations Manager at the Mid Atlantic Network of Youth and Family Services (MANY).

Are you an employer who has hired a RIC intern or a RIC intern that has been offered a job as a result of your internship? We would love to hear from you! Please contact Trisha Ross to share you RIC success stories!

Click here to check out all of the marketing Internships currently posted on the RIC!

Women in Leadership Blog Post

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Coro Pittsburgh‘s Kelsey Halling has recently guest blogged for Together We Flourish, a blog that seeks to help Southwestern Pennsylvania nonprofits to get noticed online. Kelsey is Coro’s Outreach and Development Coordinator and a former Women in Leadership (WIL) program participant. WIL is a leadership training program devoted specifically to women.

In this blog post, she talks about her personal experience with the program and application process for the Women in Leadership program. Interested? Click here to read her post!

*The Regional Internship Center is also a program of Coro Pittsburgh.

My Internship Experience at the RIC

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The End of the Road…Or Is This the Beginning?

From the beginning of May to the end of November, the Regional Internship Center served not only as my first internship experience, but an internship experience that I will never forget.  Before I started here with the RIC, the word “internship” never really sparked anything significant in my mind.  I thought of it as something that students were forced to get so that their resumes would be more appealing to employers when applying for full time jobs.  But once I landed an internship with an organization that specialized in internships, that feeling was quickly changed.  And with this internship opportunity came the exposure to a sector that I knew little to nothing about – the wonderful world of nonprofits!

A Sure Thing from Day One

From the start of my first day at the RIC, a program of Coro Pittsburgh, I knew that I would very much enjoy my time working for them.  From the small yet extremely friendly staff to the unique environment provided to work in, there was no doubt in my mind that this internship was the one for me.  This internship was unique in the fact that it let me challenge myself and explore beyond my usual boundaries.  I was given the opportunities to break out of my comfort zone and do things that I was not used to doing.  I was finally given the chance to interact with others in a professional way.  Whether I was dealing with employers, internship seekers, or even both, everything I did taught me something that was previously foreign to me.

This internship also showed me the importance of building and maintaining close relationships with the organizations you come into contact with, which says a lot about the Coro organization as a whole.  Not only do they show support for every program under the Coro name, but they provide continuous support for the organizations they believe in, and that is something rarely seen in today’s world.

Ready or Not, Here I Come!

My position as the Program Relations Intern made it easy for me to benefit from my internship because the opportunities it offered and the doors it opened were countless.  Never did I think that an internship would open up my eyes to the various organizations, industries, and sectors in the Pittsburgh area, but one did, and I was lucky enough for it to be my first internship ever.  Thanks to everyone at Coro, especially those at the RIC who have taught me so much, I am more than ready for whatever the future brings – the road to success and happiness has only just begun!

“Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end” – Semisonic

Does this Bag Make my Trash Look Fat?

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GBA Emerging Professionals Group

Green Building Alliance

Conducting a waste stream audit is a great way of finding out how much waste a building generates and if items that could otherwise be recycled are being thrown out instead. Once you can quantify what you are throwing out, you can work more effectively to reduce your waste and recycle more. A waste stream audit is also an effective way to benchmark your waste use. In the future additional waste audits can be performed to evaluate the effectiveness of waste reduction plans you have implemented.

Last fall, my office performed a waste stream audit on our DMI Corporate Headquarters Building. Cindy, a fellow Emerging Professional, and I had the pleasure of performing this audit.

For an entire week we collected all of the waste from the trash and recycle bins in the building. We did not tell any of the building occupants that we were performing the audit, so they would not change their normal waste behavior. The following week, we opened the bags, separated everything and then weighed it all. All of the waste was separated into one of the following categories:

Plastics, metal, and glass from recycling bins
Cardboard to be recycled
Plastics from trash bins which could have been recycled
Metal from trash bins which could have been recycled
Cardboard from trash bins which could have been recycled

Paper from trash bins
Food waste from trash bins
Electronics (cell phone charger, battery, etc) from trash bins which could have been recycled
Non-recyclable material from trash bins (“true garbage”)

What did we find out from our “dumpster diving”? We found out that during the week of the audit, our office generates 139.3 pounds of trash to be sent to landfills and 17 pounds of recyclables. It was surprising to find out that of the139.3 pounds of trash, 13 pounds could have been recycled. At the time of the audit, we did not have paper recycling in place, but we are currently working on implementing a paper recycling program in our office. Paper waste made up 73 pounds of the 139.3 pounds of trash. This audit showed us that simply by recycling everything we could, we could easily cut the amount of waste we generate by more than 50%.

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Image extracted from: Sustainavle2ndCentury

Following the waste stream audit, we announced the results to the office and even had a contest to see who could guess the correct amount of recyclables that ended up in the trash. Many co-workers flooded our e-mail accounts with suggestions for reducing waste in the office, such as printing double sided and using non-disposable plates at lunch meetings. We shared all of these suggestions with the entire office. After we implement a paper recycling program, we plan to do another waste stream audit to ensure that our program and other efforts have been successful.

Talent is an Asset: PHRA 2010 Conference

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In addition to my full-time placement with The Regional Internship Center, part of my Public Allies training often involves attending seminars and forums where we learn the ins and outs of the nonprofit world. In this instance, my group was asked to attend the Pittsburgh Human Resources Association: 2010 Conference.

This was an amazing opportunity to get the perspective of the people whose function it is to find the best candidates for their organization. Among the sessions that I and others from my group attended that provided information that internship-seekers may find helpful:

- Mentoring for the Next Generation of HR Leaders Presented by Dr. Rex Gatto, Ph.D

This session stressed the importance of leaders making the time and effort to actually help to grow the next generation of leaders. Part of the advantage of making use of the services of the RIC is that we help employers mutually fulfilling internship programs, but it is fantastic to know that more and more employers are realizing the importance of taking this mentorship initiative. In addition to the benefits of having a more thoroughly trained staff, I feel as though the “leaders” will transform themselves through the process of breaking down their own processes and experiences as they share these insights with their mentees.

- Understanding the Social Applications of Social Media in HR Presented by Geoff Petersen

- My Space or Your Space: Defining the Practical and Legal Metes and Bounds of the Interconnected Workplace Presented by Lynn C. Outwater SPHR & Esq.

These were 2 related sessions, but very different in their intent. The first session, “Understanding the Social Applications…” was about the usefulness of social networking media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) in both getting the name of an organization “out there,” as well as finding new and exciting talent in non-conventional ways. On the other hand, “My Space or Your Space…” elaborated on the difficulties presented by the ubiquitousness of social media. If you are seeking an internship or gainful employment of any kind, be aware that anything that you have online, even if set to “private,” will probably be found by those that you would least want it to be found by.

Overall, the focus of this conference was to stress to the HR professionals present that:
- Talent is out there.
- Organizations benefit from Having Good Talent
- Use new methods to Find the Best Talent
- Once you find the best talent, Treat Talent Well
- Don’t Burn Bridges