Workplace Safety: Bullying in the workplace
To all employers: You have a duty to manage and conduct work activities in your area to ensure the workplace safety, health and welfare of all employees. There is also a duty of care to ensure there is no improper conduct.
- Have you an Anti-Bullying Policy in your Safety Statement?
- Have you identified bullying as a hazard in your workplace?
- Do you know what constitutes bullying behaviour?
- Do you know the very severe adverse consequences that the victim of bullying behaviour suffers?
- Do you know what you should do to combat this bullying behaviour should it raise its ugly head in your workplace?
Bullying behaviour can occur anywhere or in a situation.
- It may be an employee behaving badly towards the employer.
- It may be an employee acting persistently aggressively towards another employee.
- It may be a supervisor constantly giving the mundane jobs to the same employee.
- It may be a manager giving unrealistic targets to employees.
- An employee can be excluded from a group because they are different.
- An employee may be the butt of jokes because they are different.
- An employee may be targeted because they focused on work and reach targets
The Health and Safety Authority’s definition is that it is:
“repeated inappropriate behaviour, direct or indirect, whether verbal, physical or otherwise, conducted by one or more persons against another or others, at the place of work and/or in the course of employment, which could reasonably be regarded as undermining the individual‘s right to dignity at work.”
To all employees: You have a duty not to engage in improper conduct in the workplace. If you are accused of bullying you have a right to defend yourself. You may not know that you are engaging in bullying behaviour towards a work colleague. Your attitude may be causing stress and you may not know it. Your behaviour may be considered acceptable to some people but not to your victim. There is a serious risk to health which may be prevented quite easily.
Keep everyone informed.
Prevention is better than cure!