07:24 am, Monday 25 August, 2008
Source: News.com.au
More than a quarter of Australian workers have been bullied at work, a national workplace study reveals.
Thirty per cent of respondents to the survey, released by information management provider WorkPro, admitted having been the victim of workplace bullying, while 24 per cent claimed to have been discriminated against by co-workers.
WorkPro business manager Tania Evans says these results show the problem is more prevalent than many employers realise.
“It’s quite shocking to hear from employees that this sort of behaviour continues to happen,” she says.
“Organisations need to realise that bullying and unfair treatment of staff is occurring and could be impacting on their own workplace culture – or, worse still, exposing them to the risk of liability, possible fines and even brand damage.”
Workplace bullying is estimated to cost Australian businesses billions of dollars a year through increases in staff turnover, absenteeism and legal costs, so the issue not only concerns victims but companies’ productivity and profits.
Tania Evans adds that many employers fail to realise they don’t have to be directly involved in, or even aware of, an incident to be liable.
“They can be prosecuted for an incident that happens between other staff members, as well as for not providing employees with adequate equal employment opportunity and occupational health and safety information and training,” she says.
The research found Australian employees were aware of workplace sensitivities, with almost three-quarters of the respondents saying they worried about offending colleagues in a discriminatory way on the basis of gender, disability or other distinctive attributes.
Despite most workers being aware of the issue, 27 per cent admitted they were unsure whether they would be able to tell if their own rights were being violated.
The research also revealed that when asked about their peers, almost half the 2146 respondents said they had seen colleagues bullied or discriminated against within the past two years.
Thirty-one per cent of this group said they had witnessed such incidents on numerous occasions.
“Managing the risks is about empowering your people to fully understand their rights and responsibilities at work, and to feel like they can speak up on inappropriate behaviour without experiencing recrimination as a result,” Evans says.
Helen Kyriakou, operations manager at recruitment firm Hallis, says all staff employed at the company are thoroughly trained when hired to ensure they know how to handle issues relating to bullying or discrimination in the workplace.
“We’ve put processes and education in place so people understand the boundaries,” Kyriakou says.
“Internal employees would talk to their manager. If they aren’t able to get clarity, the matter will be escalated – in our case, to our corporate services general manager.”
Kyriakou says it’s important for workers to know they can discuss in confidence any issues that arise.
“It’s imperative that the support network is in place – because when situations happen where people feel they’re being bullied and they don’t feel they can confide in someone, they won’t say anything at all.”
OHS News Tip: Bullying in The Workplace Work Method Statement
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