The Priti Patel story has highlighted allegations or workplace bullying at the highest level of our society. I am sure many people can relate to being at the receiving end of this damaging behaviour at work, and have stories to tell that would shock and distress us all.  Research has shown that being bullied can result in stress related mental and physical ill-health. This blog intends to help you understand what bullying is and what can be done to reduce the likelihood of occurring in your workplace and the potential consequence should it occur.

What is bullying?

The Institution of Safety and Health (IOSH) define bullying as: ‘Unfair, offensive, intimidating or insulting behaviour intended to undermine, humiliate or injure someone’. They go on to say that if a worker feels they are being singled out for unfair treatment by a boss or colleague, they are probably being bullied. Here are five examples of workplace bullying behaviour

1. Constantly criticising competent staff, removing responsibilities from them, or giving them trivial tasks
2. Shouting at staff
3. Persistently picking on people in front of others or in private
4. Consistently attacking a member of staff in terms of their professional or personal standing
5. Setting a person up to fail by overloading them with work or setting impossible deadlines

 

How might we respond to bullying?

It is important to say that our reaction to bullying is subjective. Some people will be able to ‘give as good as they get’ and will deal with it that way. Some will report it so that it will be dealt with swiftly and some people will be greatly harmed by the bullying which may result in symptoms such as; anxiety, headaches, digestion problems, nausea, sleeplessness, loss of self-confidence, and even suicidal thoughts. It depends on the perception of the individual if they determine the bullying behaviour as a threat. If they do, then the natural biological ‘fight or flight’ response kicks in and certain hormones are released into the body to help the person deal with the threat. If the bullying behaviour is ongoing, this increases the risk of chronic stress which is potentially extremely harmful both physically or mentally if not addressed.

What the law says:

The law dictates that it is the duty of every employer to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable the health, safety and welfare at work, of all of his employees. That includes eliminating or reducing the risk of workplace bullying.  So, let’s see how that can be achieved.

Employer duties, leading from the top

• Put a strict and clear policy in place that bullying is not acceptable and communicate this to all members of the workforce.
• Make a plan of how you are going to manage this and who is responsible for what. Remember the employer can assign responsibility to others, but ultimately, they are accountable. So, lead from the top and show a good example.
• Train your staff to recognise bullying behaviour and your managers how to ‘listen’ to reports of bullying so that they are able to offer assistance when required, promptly and with compassion. They must understand that people are different and respond in different ways to bullying behaviour.
• It is also important for managers to know when a situation requires more senior managers input.
• Put in place a clear system of reporting and investigating any allegations of bullying and communicate this to all managers and staff members.
• Monitor all instances of bullying allegations to ascertain if there is a trend or culture of unfair behaviour within your organisation.
• Review your policy regularly and make improvements when necessary.
• Always have transparent communication at all levels that bullying will not be tolerated and that it is taken extremely seriously within the organisation.

What employees and individuals can do:

• Follow the requirements of the anti-bullying policy to the letter.
• Do not make any member of staff a figure of fun, even if you think they can take it.
• If you feel that you are being bullied, take the appropriate steps to report it promptly before it becomes a bigger problem.
• Don’t mistake single episodes of mutual disagreements for bullying. 
• Help your employer to keep your workplace a bullying free zone.

Bullying is one of many hazards that has the potential to lead to work related stress. It is covered in the HSE Management Standards Guidance under the ‘support’ and ‘relationships’ headings.  NPTNI offer an excellent IOSH Managing Safely Course, which includes crucial information on work related stress and how to manage it. Please feel free to ask for further information on the course, or our tailored Stress Awareness and Management course. In the meantime, I hope this helps you understand a little more about reducing bullying in the workplace.