Evidence from Destructive Conflict, the
UK's largest ever study of work place bullying, found that one
in ten people were bullied at work over the last 6 months. This
equates to approximately two million of the UK's 24 million employees.
Many 'targets' of bullying said they were victimised on a daily
or weekly basis.
What is bullying and how can it be recognised in the workplace?
Bullying is regular intimidation that undermines the confidence
and capability of the victim. It may be characterised as 'offensive,
intimidating, malicious or insulting behaviour, an abuse or misuse
of power through means intended to undermine, humiliate, denigrate
or injure the recipient' (ACAS).
The major problem is
recognising the bullying in the workplace, as it is rarely confined
to open aggression or obviously hurtful
remarks.
Extreme cases of bullying are easily identifiable but it is the
grey areas that cause problems. What may be considered as bullying
by one person may be considered firm management by another.
Therefore it is good practice for employees to give examples of
what is considered unacceptable
behaviour in their organisation, these may include:
Spreading malicious rumours
Insulting someone (particularly on  the
grounds of age, race, sex,
disability,
sexual orientation and
religion
or belief)
Exclusion or victimisation
Ridiculing or demeaning someone
-
picking on them or setting them
up
to fail
Overbearing supervision
Unwelcome sexual advances
Making threats or comments
about job security without
foundation
Preventing individuals
progressing by intentionally
blocking promotion or training
opportunities
Why do employers need to take action
It is in the employers' interest to encourage a healthy, safe
and fair atmosphere for employees to work in as bullying can create
severe problems in organisations
including:
Lost productivity (statistics show
that
each year as many as
18.9
million workdays are lost to
bullying)
Absence (up to half of all stress
related illnesses are a direct result
of bullying)
Resignations
Damage to company reputation
Tribunal and other court cases
(with compensation payments)
Low morale and poor employee
relations
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What are the legal implications?
Bullying at work is not in itself
illegal. However, a bully may be in breach of discrimination and
harassment laws or health and safety laws. A bully may firstly
risk personal liability for his or her actions.
Moreover, if the mutual trust and confidence between an employee
and an employer is broken through bullying at work, then an employee
might also have the right to resign and claim 'constructive dismissal'
on the grounds of breach of contract. In common law, employers
do have a 'duty of care' for all their employees where they are
bound to provide a safe working environment which includes freedom
from bullying.
What should employers be doing?
Official guidance from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) requires
employers to:
Operate an effective anti-bullying
procedure or a grievance procedure
that includes how to deal with
complaints of bullying.
Treat bullying in the same way as
any other hazard at work, e,g
dangerous equipment or working
alone. This means using the HSE's
five steps to a risk assessment
- identifying where bullying is taking
place, who is affected and how,
take steps to stop it and keep the
issue under review.
A formal anti bullying policy does not have to be over elaborate
and could be included in other personnel policies. A specific
policy on bullying could include:
A clear statement of commitment
from senior management that
bullying and harassment are
unlawful, will not be tolerated, may
be treated as discilinary offences and
that decisions should not be taken
on the basis of whether someone
submitted to or rejected a particular
instance of harassment
Examples of unacceptable behaviour
Confidentialty for any complaint
Reference to grievance procedures
(formal and informal), including
timescales for action
Counselling and support availability
Employers should ensure that they investigate the complaint promptly
and objectively. Sometimes it may be possible to rectify matters
informally. However where an informal resolution is not possible,
it may be necessary to deal with the matter formally at the appropriate
level of the organisations disciplinary procedure.
If the bullying allegation is sufficiently serious a period of
suspension may be required while the matter is investigated.
If you have any doubts as to how to deal with bullying in
the work place or on how to try to prevent it in the first place,
then take advice before your business or organisation becomes
a victim of the bullying culture
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