Preventing Workplace Bullying

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Preventing Workplace Bullying

• Jenny Thomas Director Industry Programs Group
  WorkCover NSW
• 8 September 2004

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Introduction

• Bullying
• crosses professional boundaries
• can occur in superior-subordinate and peer
  relationships
• a survey of 1000 people in Victoria -14 bullied
  in previous 6 months
• Australian research - up to 75 of the victims of
  long-term bullying display symptoms of PTSD

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Overview

• What is workplace bullying
• Cost of workplace bullying
• Legislative requirements
• Responsible agencies
• WorkCover response
• What can be done
• WorkCover initiatives

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What is workplace bullying?

• Repeated aggressive behaviour that intimidates,
  humiliates and/or undermines a person or group by
  another or others in the workplace
• Examples may include
• yelling
• screaming
• abusive language
• continually criticizing someone
• isolating or ignoring a worker
• sabotaging a persons ability to do their job by
  not providing them with vital information,
  appropriate training and/or resources

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Cost of workplace bullying

• In 2001 - Qld Bullying Taskforce estimated
  between 6 and 13 billion
• Individuals
• injuries, increased stress levels and ill health
• reduction in capacity to safely perform work
  tasks, with adverse consequences for workplace
  health and safety

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Cost of workplace bullying

• Employers
• reduced worker productivity and efficiency
• low workforce morale and increased absenteeism
• higher workers compensation premiums and/or
  legal costs associated with defending civil or
  criminal charges
• Government
• resources expended investigating complaints
• maintenance of Courts and tribunals hearing
  bullying claims/charges

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Legislative Requirements

• Throughout Australia, it is against the law
  harass a person because of their
• sex
• pregnancy
• marital status
• race (including such things as colour,
  nationality, ethnic descent and ethnic
  background)
• disability (including physical, intellectual or
  psychiatric disability either actual or
  perceived)
• age (except in Tasmania)

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Legislative Requirements

• In New South Wales it is also against the law to
  harass a person because of their
• ethno-religion
• actual or perceived homosexuality or
  trans-sexuality
• their relatives, friends or colleagues sex,
  pregnancy, race, marital status, disability,
  ethno-religion, homosexuality, transgender or age

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Legislative Requirements

• Occupational Health and Safety Law
• Clause 9 of the Occupational Health and Safety
  Regulation 2001 requires employers to identify
  psychological hazards and hazards arising from
  the potential for workplace violence
• Clause 11 of the Regulation requires employers to
  eliminate or control risks to health and safety
  arising from such hazards

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Responsible Agencies

• Several statutes - criminal, industrial
  relations, anti-discrimination and occupational
  health and safety laws, seek to prevent bullying
  and violence
• Several Government agencies have overlapping
  interests and regulatory responsibilities

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Responsible Agencies

• The chief agencies in New South Wales are
• NSW Police
• the NSW Anti-Discrimination Board
• WorkCover
• the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission
• the Office of Industrial Relations
• Department of Community Services (if victim is a
  young person)
• the NSW Ombudsman

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WorkCover Response

• Workplace bullying is best dealt with by an
  employers internal grievance and dispute
  resolution procedures long before it becomes a
  risk to health and safety
• Publications
• Violence in the workplace
• Fact sheets
• Website monitoring

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WorkCover Response

• WorkCover will
• examine the policies, procedures and training an
  employer has in place to deal with bullying and
• ensure that appropriate workers compensation and
  injury management is provided to employees in the
  event of injury
• not become involved in dispute resolution or
  mediation

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What Can be Done

• Development and implementation of
• anti-bullying policies
• standards of behavior within workplaces
• Strategies to
• increase awareness of bullying as a problem
  through information and training sessions
• provide victims with support
• encourage the use of internal dispute resolution
  procedures
• 'soft skill' or 'people skills' development for
  managers

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WorkCover Initiatives

• Inter-agency Coordination
• description of agencies role
• supported by Inter-agency Agreements
• Publications
• separate guidance material for employers and
  employees
• tripartite development
• Frequently asked questions
• advice about rights and services available
• information about the services of all relevant
  investigative bodies

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Preventing Workplace Bullying

• Jenny Thomas Director Industry Programs Group
  WorkCover NSW