Task Force on Workplace Bullying issues report

A Task Force on the Prevention of Workplace Bullying established by the Irish government issued a report in April 2001, containing a number of recommendations aimed at reducing bullying at the workplace. If put into practice on a sufficient scale, these recommendations should prove to be important in tackling the problem of bullying.

The Task Force on the Prevention of Workplace Bullying was established in September 1999 by the Minister for Labour, Trade and Consumer Affairs. It is chaired by the educationalist, Eileen Doyle, and consists of representatives from the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU), theIrish Business and Employers Confederation (IBEC), theEmployment Appeals Tribunal, theLabour Court, theLabour Relations Commission, theHealth and Safety Authority (HSA), theEquality Authority, and the Departments of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

Three objectives were established in the Task Force's terms of reference:

1. to identify the scale of the problem of workplace bullying and the sectors most at risk;

2. to develop practical programmes and strategies to prevent workplace bullying; and

3. to produce a coordinated response from state agencies and to report to the Minister.

The Task Force published a report in April 2001, containing both results from a survey of bullying and a number of practical recommendations to reduce it ("Dignity at work: The challenge of workplace bullying", Report of the Task Force on the Prevention of Workplace Bullying. Government Publications Office, 2001).

Survey on workplace bullying

The Task Force commissioned a survey on workplace bullying from the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI). The survey, based on 5,252 successfully completed questionnaires, found that 7% of respondents had been bullied at work in the last six months. Significantly, the female rate of 9.5% was higher than the male rate of 5.3%. In relation to age, workers in the 26-45 age group were slightly more likely to experience bullying than those in the 46 plus age bracket. There was no substantial variation by social class, though incidences of bullying were higher amongst workers with higher educational qualifications.

In terms of sectoral spread, bullying was most evident in public administration and defence (reported by 14% of respondents), education (12%), and health/social work (10%). It was lower in construction (3.4%), retail/wholesale (5.3%), and transport/communications (5.4%). It was discovered that bullying was more prevalent in larger (10%) rather than smaller workplaces (3.2%).

By far the most common form of bullying was verbal abuse and insults (81% of cases reported), while exclusion was cited in 35% of cases. Sexual harassment was cited in 3.3% of cases, while physical abuse was cited in 1.8% of cases. The perpetrators of bullying were most likely to be a supervisor or manager (45%), with the next largest category being a colleague (42%). The vast majority of male victims (82%) reported being bullied by other males, while 55% of females were reportedly bullied by other females, 41% were bullied by males, and 4% were bullied by both sexes.

The frequency of bullying varied substantially. About 20% of those reporting bullying stated that they experienced it on a daily basis, 19% experienced it several times a week, 22% experienced it several times a month, while 39% said that they were bullied occasionally. The most common response to bullying was to discuss it with family and friends, which about two-thirds of victims reported. Furthermore, about 50% of people reporting bullying discussed it with a manager or supervisor, 15% with a trade union, and 13% approached the employer's personnel department. In terms of the effects of bullying, about half of those bullied reported an effect on their life outside work, while 54% considered leaving their jobs, and 11% did leave.

Task Force recommendations

In addition to commissioning the ESRI survey, the Task Force makes a number of practical recommendations and suggestions aimed at reducing workplace bullying.

One of its most important tasks was to construct a definition of workplace bullying, and it recommends the following: "Workplace bullying 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. An isolated incident of the behaviour described in this definition may be an affront to dignity at work but as a one-off incident is not considered to be bullying."

The Task Force considered introducing new legislation to outlaw bullying, but, in the event, decided to draw upon existing employment and equality legislation. Workplace bullying is not addressed explicitly by law in Ireland, but the Task Force states that, if necessary, specific anti-bullying legislation could be introduced in the future. The laws currently addressing aspects of workplace bullying are:

• the Industrial Relations Act 1990;

• the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 1989; and

• the Employment Equality Act 1998 (IE9909144F).

One of the key recommendations issued by the Task Force is that, because there is no state agency with a remit for dealing with bullying, the current Health and Safety Authority should be given overall responsibility for the issue. To this end, the HSA has been charged with establishing an advisory committee to examine bullying. The committee will be made up of representatives from the Equality Authority, the Labour Court, the Labour Relations Commission, ICTU and IBEC.

Other recommendations include drawing up three codes of practice within three months to establish anti-bullying policies and promote best practice at enterprise level. The Task Force Report states: "While such codes are broadly viewed as voluntarist, they are developing a quasi-legal status".

The Task Force also recommends a "Dignity at Work Charter" and a specific anti-bullying policy in every workplace. The Charter would be a statement of workers' entitlements in relation to workplace dignity. A sample Charter that could be adopted by organisations is included in the report. It outlines a number of principles and objectives, and a declaration. The main principle in the sample Charter is the "core employment value" of ensuring that each individual is "guaranteed a working environment" promoting the "right to be treated with dignity both by management and work colleagues". The two main objectives are to:

1. create and maintain a positive working environment that recognises the right of each individual to dignity at work; and

2. ensure that all individuals are aware of and committed to the principles set out in the charter.

The sample Charter concludes with a declaration, whereby all people in a particular workplace would commit themselves to working together to promote dignity at work: "All who work here are expected to respect the right of each individual to dignity in their working life. All will be treated equally and respected for their individuality and diversity. Bullying in any form is not accepted by us and will not be tolerated."

The Task Force suggests that anti-bullying policies should be separate from the proposed Charter and more specific to each company. They should contain measures including: details of sanctions; step-by-step procedures for both formal and informal allegations; clarifications on the degree of confidentiality and involvement by outside agencies or human resources personnel; a commitment to reprisal-free complaining; and provision that more than one person should be contactable for complaints.

ESB anti-bullying policy

One of the most comprehensive anti-bullying policies in Ireland is found at the semi-state electricity utility, the Electricity Supply Board (ESB). The ESB's policy has been in place since 1997, and the company's group of trade unions has been involved in shaping it. In addition to bullying which involves outright aggression and humiliation, the policy also encompasses issues such as: subjecting colleagues to "unreasonable scrutiny"; excessive criticism about "minor things"; "undermining a person's authority"; "setting individuals impossible objectives", "constantly changing work requirements without telling the individual"; and "blocking another staff member's development".

The policy identifies "contact people" who can be approached to discuss problems. Victims are offered a choice between formal and informal procedures for lodging their complaint. The informal procedure involves making a verbal complaint without necessarily naming the alleged harasser, and appropriate action being taken by a "contact person". If this route does not suffice, the formal procedure can be activated. This involves a written complaint naming the alleged harasser and the nature of the complaint. An investigation is then carried out (see"Bullying in the workplace - No longer something to tolerate", Industrial Relations News, 5, 1997).

Commentary

If they are practically implemented on a widespread scale, the Task Force's recommendations on workplace bullying should prove to be important in tackling the thorny issue of workplace bullying. However, the recommendations are still largely of a voluntarist nature, and the existing employment and equality legislation does not specifically address workplace bullying. Thus, it may be the case that specific anti-bullying legislation may be required in the future in order to provide "greater teeth", in terms of reducing the blight of bullying at the workplace (Tony Dobbins, CEROP, UCD).