<div class="container">
    <div class="statusColumn"><span>Normal</span></div>
    <div class="statusColumn"><a>Normal</a></div>
    <div class="statusColumn"><b>Rotated</b></div>
    <div class="statusColumn"><abbr>Normal</abbr></div>
</div>

.statusColumn b {
  writing-mode: tb-rl;
  white-space: nowrap;
  display: inline-block;
  overflow: visible;
  transform: rotate(-90deg);
  transform-origin: 50% 50%;
}

<div id="container">
  <something class="element-to-rotate">bla bla bla</something>
</div>

<div id="container">
  <div class="rotation-wrapper-outer">
    <div class="rotation-wrapper-inner">
      <something class="element-to-rotate">bla bla bla</something>
    </div>
  </div>
</div>

.rotation-wrapper-outer {
  display: table;
}
.rotation-wrapper-inner {
  padding: 50% 0;
  height: 0;
}
.element-to-rotate {
  display: block;
  transform-origin: top left;
  /* Note: for a CLOCKWISE rotation, use the commented-out
     transform instead of this one. */
  transform: rotate(-90deg) translate(-100%);
  /* transform: rotate(90deg) translate(0, -100%); */
  margin-top: -50%;

  /* Not vital, but possibly a good idea if the element you're rotating contains
     text and you want a single long vertical line of text and the pre-rotation
     width of your element is small enough that the text wraps: */
  white-space: nowrap;
}

$(".statusColumn").each(function() {
    var $this = $(this),
        child = $this.children(":first");
    $this.css("minHeight", function() {
        return child[0].getBoundingClientRect().height;
    });
});

transform: rotate(-90deg) translateX(-100%);
transform-origin: top left;

<br>