When Techs Hurt Techs: Bullying and Horizontal Violence in
Veterinary Medicine Bullying and horizontal violence are
workplace issues that manifest themselves among groups of people
who work closely together. While it can happen in any workplace,
these issues have been studied extensively in human nursing.
Horizontal violence can be defined as untoward, unkind,
offensive interactions among people of the same hierarchy who
aim to discredit and destroy the self-esteem and confidence of
the other party.1 Consider the many relationships where
horizontal violence may occur in our profession: newly
credentialed technician vs tenured uncredentialed technician,
treatment room staff vs receptionist, or intern vs experienced
technician. Bullying and horizontal violence are destructive to
employee job satisfaction, yet these behaviors are often ignored
by management. In addition to the negative effects they have on
employee morale, patient care may be affected if those being
bullied are unhappy in their jobs and redirect