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A proactive approach to target bullying at work

New Workplace, Vol 4(3), 1998

Bullying is a largely hidden problem in the workplace, often taking place behind closed doors and without witnesses. The effects of bullying can be devastating to the health and well-being of those exposed to it and the cost to organisations in terms of lost productivity and staff turnover can be substantial.

What is bullying at work?

A bully is defined in the Concise Oxford Dictionary as "a person who uses strength or power to coerce others by fear" and that to bully is to "oppress, persecute, physically or morally by (threat of) superior force."

Examples of bullying behaviour include unfair and excessive criticism, publicly insulting victims, ignoring their point of view, constantly changing or setting unrealistic work targets and undervaluing their efforts at work.

Scope of the problem

A 1996 survey of over 1,000 workers by the Institute of Personnel and Development in the UK found that one in eight people had been bullied at work in the previous five years.

The majority had been bullied by more senior staff. Almost one third of victims said that the bully was their head of department or section while 16% said it was their chief executive or managing director.

A survey of 1,137 employees in 1994 by Staffordshire University Business School found that one in two employees were being or had been bullied at some time in their working life.

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Impact on workplace productivity

A 1997 survey by the South Australian Working Women's Centre found that 70.2 per cent of respondents reported taking time off as a result of being bullied at work. The majority of these used sick leave (75%) while 27.9% used workers compensation. Some respondents used a combination of leave types.

The survey found that some commonly reported effects of bullying included:

• stress, anxiety and tension
• feelings of social isolation at work
• loss of confidence and self esteem
• loss or deterioration of personal relationships
• headaches, backaches, stomach cramps and depression.

Dealing with the problem

It is vital to act promptly to eliminate bullying in the workplace. Ongoing bullying can be costly in terms of increased sick leave, absenteeism and turnover. By creating a work environment which does not tolerate bullying, you can substantially improve staff commitment and productivity.

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Eliminate bullying at work

There are a number of steps that you can take to eliminate bullying in your workplace:

• establish and circulate a policy making bullying clearly unacceptable
• identify unacceptable behaviour and explain why it is unacceptable
• nominate a staff member who is trained in counselling and encourage anyone who feels they have been bullied to talk to them
• actively encourage employees who are being bullied to lodge a complaint
• guarantee confidentiality of any complaints and investigate them promptly
• ensure a fair hearing to the person being bullied and provide support
• monitor the work environment to ensure that it is bullying-free, especially where there has been restructuring or a change in personnel
• provide ongoing training for all staff to cover bullying awareness, harassment and discrimination, assertiveness, interpersonal skills and confidence building.