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July 27, 2008
INFORMATION ABOUT BULLYING
EVERYONE SHOULD BE TREATED WITH DIGNITY AND RESPECT AT WORK.
Bullying and harassment of any kind are in no-one’s interest and should not be tolerated in the workplace.
WHAT ARE BULLYING AND HARASSMENT?
Examples and definitions of what may be considered bullying and harassment are provided below for guidance. For practical purposes those making a complaint usually define what they mean by bullying or harassment – something has happened to them that is unwelcome, unwarranted and causes a detrimental effect. If employees1 complain they are being bullied or harassed, then they have a grievance which must be dealt with regardless of whether or not their complaint accords with a standard definition.
HOW CAN BULLYING AND HARASSMENT BE RECOGNISED?
There are many definitions of bullying and harassment. Bullying 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.
Harassment, in general terms, is:
unwanted conduct affecting the dignity of men and women in the workplace. It may be related to age, sex, race, disability, religion, nationality or any personal characteristic of the individual, and may be persistent or an isolated incident. The key is that the actions or comments are viewed as demeaning and unacceptable to the recipient.
Behaviour that is considered bullying by one person may be considered firm management by another. Most people will agree on extreme cases of bullying and harassment but it is sometimes the ‘grey’ areas that cause most problems. It is good practice for employers to give examples of what is unacceptable behaviour in their organisation and this may include:
• spreading malicious rumours, or insulting someone (particularly on the grounds of race, sex, disability, sexual orientation and religion or belief)
• copying memos that are critical about someone to others who do not need to know
• ridiculing or demeaning someone – picking on them or setting them up to fail
• exclusion or victimisation
• unfair treatment
• overbearing supervision or other misuse of power or position
• unwelcome sexual advances – touching, standing too close, display of offensive materials
• making threats or comments about job security without foundation
• deliberately undermining a competent worker by overloading and constant criticism
• preventing individuals progressing by intentionally blocking promotion or training opportunities.
Bullying and harassment are not necessarily face to face, they may be by written communications, electronic (e)mail (so called ‘flame-mail’), phone, and automatic supervision methods – such as computer recording of downtime from work, or recording of telephone conversations – if these are not universally applied to all workers.
Bullying and harassment can often be hard to recognise – they may not be obvious to others, and may be insidious. The recipient may think ‘perhaps this is normal behaviour in this organisation’. They may be anxious that others will consider them weak, or not up to the job, if they find the actions of others intimidating. They may be accused of ‘overreacting’, and worry that they won’t be believed if they do report incidents.
People being bullied or harassed may sometimes appear to overreact to something that seems relatively trivial but which may be the ‘last straw’ following a series of incidents. There is often fear of retribution if they do make a complaint. Colleagues may be reluctant to come forward as witnesses, as they too may fear the consequences for themselves. They may be so relieved not to be the subject of the bully themselves that they collude with the bully as a way of avoiding attention.
THE LEGAL POSITION
Discrimination and harassment
It is not possible to make a direct complaint to an employment tribunal about bullying. However, employees might be able to bring complaints under laws covering discrimination and harassment. For example:
• sex: the Sex Discrimination Act gives protection against discrimination and victimisation on the grounds of sex, marriage or because someone intends to undergo, is undergoing or has undergone gender reassignment
• race: the Race Relations Act 1976 gives protection against discrimination and victimisation on the grounds of colour or nationality. The regulations that amended the Act (Race Regulations 2003) also give a stand alone right to protection from harassment on the grounds of race and ethnic or national origin
• disability: the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 gives protection against discrimination and victimisation
• sexual orientation: the Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003 give protection against discrimination and harassment on the grounds of sexual orientation (orientation is defined as 'same sex' - lesbian/gay - 'opposite sex' - heterosexual - and 'both sexes' - bisexual)
• religion or belief: the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003 give protection against discrimination and harassment on the grounds of religion or belief.
UNFAIR DISMISSAL
Employers have a 'duty of care' for all their employees. If the mutual trust and confidence between employer and employee is broken - for example, through bullying and harassment at work - then an employee can resign and claim 'constructive dismissal' on the grounds of breach of contract. Employers are usually responsible in law for the acts of their workers.
HEALTH AND SAFETY
Breach of contract may also include the failure to protect an employee's health and safety at work. Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 employers are responsible for the health, safety and welfare at work of all employees.
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Posted by Hampshire at July 27, 2008 01:09 PM