As a teenager, during university holidays I had a seasonal job working under a woman who was feared by all.

She was very tall and very intimidating and it didn’t take much for her to fly into a rage. And when she did, it was nothing short of terrifying.

The mostly female workforce usually attributed her bad moods to not having a man, a common justification for any manner of grumpiness at that time (30 years ago) and usually levelled against women by other women.

This boss reduced me to tears on more than one occasion. I can’t recall why but am fairly certain I hadn’t done much slash anything to merit the treatment.

Once when I queried my wages she remarked in front of colleagues that “surely someone who was at the University would understand a pay slip”.

There are a few things going on here but at the most basic level, it’s not a very helpful response.

Workplace bullying has been back in the media spotlight recently with the resignation of UK government minister Sir Gavin Williamson who stands accused of sending (very) abusive messages to a fellow Tory MP but has vowed to clear his name.

Closer to home, the University of Glasgow was forced to apology to staff and students after an inquiry identified ‘distressing’ incidents of sexism.

Read more: University of Glasgow leaders sorry for 'distressing sexism' 

It was launched after a grievance lodged by female academics claiming gendered bullying by the head of undergraduate medicine was upheld by the university. 

Dr James Going, who resigned from his lecturing post, said women had been “sidelined, minimised and ignored.” Their experience is backed up in medicine more generally.

The Herald:

A survey last year of 2,458 doctors by the BMA in 2021 found that 91% of women doctors in the UK have experienced sexism at work including being overlooked for promotion.

Back to Westminster and 2020 when a Cabinet Office enquiry found that Home Secretary Priti Patel had created what was described as a ‘climate of fear’ in her department. 

It is not easy to admit this but in my working life most of my worst experiences have been with female bosses.

Social movements such as #MeToo and Time’s Up are igniting change and bringing women together. Yet, it still remains taboo for women to speak out about woman-on-woman bullying at work. 

The Workplace Bullying Institute found that women bully others up to 80% of the time, with female bosses more likely to engage in job sabotage and emotional abuse.

Experts say women who rise to the top often take on a more aggressive leadership style in order to fit in and survive. particularly in male-dominated professions.

They may leverage less of their emotional intelligence and more masculine traits because they believe being too friendly makes them appear weak and incompetent. 

Read more: Senior academic at centre of sexist bullying probe to leave Scots university 

The stress of jockeying for position can bubble over into bad behaviour.

In my case, the behaviour ranged from being given more menial tasks than male colleagues, belittlement until confidence is eroded and overt aggression. The kind of treatment that leaves its mark for years to come.

I recall also being asked why in response to lechery from a male colleague – I couldn’t handle that sort of thing “at my age”.  

Some of this is down to individual personalities of course while working relationships between women can be complex.

Psychologists say women who target other women may do so because they feel threatened and insecure.

Instead of working with them, they work against them viewing them as their competition.

A friend returned from maternity leave to find that another woman was doing her job, permanently.

She won her grievance against the firm but the stress of the experience ultimately resulted in her leaving the company.

She said: “It’s difficult enough to leave your 11-month-old to return to work without finding out your terms and conditions have changed with no discussion or negotiation.

“There is a special kind of disappointment and trauma that comes from being treated badly by another woman at a particularly vulnerable time in your life like returning to work after having a baby.”

I recall a female colleague with childcare issues being refused one work at home day by a women boss, who also had a child.

The new way of working necessitates trust from employers but the evidence shows that during the pandemic working from home did not lead to a decline in productivity. It is acceptable now because men are doing it too.

Is it worse to be bullied by another female? It can feel like a betrayal when women are still fighting for equality in the workplace.

In 2022, the pay gap among full-time employees increased to 8.3%, up from 7.7% in 2021.

Men are less likely to be juggling caring responsibilities with careers and this reduced stress may translate into better behaviour towards your employees.

A  lack of management training is also a factor. We all know people who have been promoted into leadership roles who have no clue how to lead, fairly.

Thankfully for me, the days of toxic bosses are in the past. I’m fortunate to have line managers who are fair and decent.

It’s not rocket science, if you treat everyone fairly it will bring out the best in your employees.

More people working from home has also changed the office dynamic and it would be interesting to know what impact this has had on reports of bullying.

You might assume that toxic behaviour has been reduced but if social media has taught us anything useful it is that abuse is often easier behind the guise of a screen.