STOP BULLYING DEPRESSING INDIVIDUALS, WRECKING TEAM WORK AND DEVASTATING LIVES

Bullying is endemic in the workplace. It starts in the playground and is there in almost all walks of life. It can be the cause of chronic personal hardship leading to massive financial consequences for organisations.

It cannot be stamped out completely because what is one person’s bullying is another’s friendly banter. Nevertheless, all organisations have a legal duty to supply a safe place of work. This includes protection from bullying and harassment.

DOING NOTHING will lead to higher sickness absence and reduction in staff morale. You will be seen as a bad employer and it could lead to litigation.

Employers should acknowledge that bullying exists and create a policy and set of procedures for handling it. This must include a confidential reporting process. They should develop a climate of unacceptability. They should provide training and education into behavourial skills. They must provide support for all involved and insist the bully receives counselling

Here's a list of steps you can train your staff to take when they feel bullied:

• Don't ignore it. You have the right to be treated equally and as fairly as everybody else under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. This means your employer has a duty to protect your health, welfare and safety.
• Try talking to the person calmly and confidently, saying that you find their approach and behaviour to you unacceptable. Standing up directly to the bullying behaviour like this - preferably in front of some other colleagues - may be all it takes to stop it happening again. People who bully do not like their authority undermined.
• You should tell someone, especially as most bullying behaviour goes on in secret, or away from a group of colleagues. You might also be bullied over emails, on the phone or in writing so don't try and face it on your own; there is strength and often comfort in numbers, and you may find that other people are also going through the same thing.
• Keep a diary and log the times and dates of bullying behaviour - and exactly what that behaviour is. When the person bullying you is tackled, your account of what's been going on will be important.
• Tell your manager or supervisor. If it is one of them who is bullying you, go to their manager. Take your diary with you as evidence to back up what you have to say. You could gently remind them that by law they have to do all they can to stamp it out.

To discuss a bullying project contact us or call 01582 792875