Case Study: Workplace , , How do you deal with the radicalisation of co-workers? When is the safety of the company and the team at risk?

If you feel that employees are becoming radicalised, you don't just worry about the team. Managers are also jointly responsible for the security of their company or institution. Sometimes it is difficult to judge whether a person is a strong believer or may have turned to Islamist groups. Managers and colleagues can call the experts at the Advice Centre on Radicalisation.

Employee wants to convert colleagues

Tim's* training manager had got to know the young man as a conscientious trainee. He mostly kept to himself, he was quiet, always punctual and polite. The boss was all the more surprised when a trainee asked for a confidential conversation – it was about Tim, she said. The young woman seemed depressed, she could hardly look at her boss. It had been very difficult for her to come to him, she said. She felt like a traitor, but it just couldn't go on like that. Tim had started talking a lot about Islam a few weeks ago. At first his colleagues had not thought anything of it. At the end of the day, everyone is allowed to believe what they want. But as time went on, Tim began to annoy the others with his religious teachings. He constantly wanted to talk about the "right" faith and why his was in particular the only true one. The others soon called him "the missionary" when he was not around. And this happened more and more often. Tim stopped going to the canteen with the others. He also stopped showing up at trainee get-togethers. Instead, he became aggressive in some cases when it came to religion.

Tim berates his colleague as a non-believer

The situation had escalated when he had clashed with the young woman, who then asked her boss to talk. She had seen that Tim, instead of working, was surfing religious websites. When he noticed that she was behind him, he had berated her, as someone with a different faith, as an denier of God and infidel.

What do you do when a worker becomes radicalised?

After the young woman had described her experiences, the supervisor looked at her. She was a good employee, always loyal and friendly. Now she looked unhappy. He thanked her for her openness, closed the door behind her and sat down at his desk. He was worried by what he had heard. Was Tim in danger – or even dangerous? Was the working atmosphere in danger of deteriorating? Had this already happened without him noticing? And then the websites that Tim had visited. Had he also downloaded files? And could Tim's behaviour endanger the entire company? He wanted to talk to other trainees to find out more about the young man. Was he just strictly religious and inspired by the idea of convincing others of his faith, or had he possibly turned to radical Islamist groups?

Clarification by the Advice Centre on Radicalisation

Tim's boss spoke with three other young persons from his team and the company's security officer. The latter advised him to call the Advice Centre on Radicalisation. Through the conversation, the hotline employee found more and more evidence that Tim might have been radicalised. However, this could only be determined more precisely on site. The deradicalisation expert said that this would require time and further discussions. He gave the boss initial tips on how best to deal with Tim and what he could do to protect the team and his company. He then referred the caller to a local partner whose counsellors were experienced in dealing with radicalisation.
Since the local counsellor has been accompanying the boss and the team, there has been more dialogue between Tim, his boss and the other colleagues. The young man has become more open and is becoming an active part of the team again. The boss is relieved that Tim will probably finish his training well and that the atmosphere in the team is relaxed and collegial again.

* The case of Tim is fictitious. We treat all the information of our callers as strictly confidential, so this is not a real case.