Recognising and Removing the Risks of Workplace Bullying

The Four Step Process

Step One – Identifying the Hazard

Step Two – Assessing the Risk Factors

Step Three – Controlling the Risk Factors

Step Four – Evaluation and Review

Although primarily a psychological issue, workplace bullying should be managed like any other Occupational Health and Safety hazard. That is, once identified the degree of risk should be assessed and the risk controlled and reviewed to ensure that workplace bullying does not become, or continue to be, a problem within the workplace. Behaviours that may amount to breaches of criminal law should be immediately reported to the police. Examples include, but are not limited to, assault and unlawful threats.

An assessment of the risks within a workplace should also consider the risks to the employer if workplace bullying is not appropriately dealt with. By using a four step process, employers should be able to minimise the direct and indirect costs associated with bullying in their workplace and ensure that the health, safety and welfare of staff and associated people is not compromised.

The Four Step Process

Step One – Identifying the Hazard

The first step in the process is establishing whether workplace bullying actually exists, or whether there is a potential for bullying to occur in the workplace at some point in the future. Workplace bullying is often subtle or hidden. Although there may be no obvious signs of workplace bullying, it does not mean that such behaviour or conduct does not exist.

The onus is upon the employer to actively take reasonable steps to help identify whether workplace bullying exists, or has the potential to exist. It is, therefore, recommended that employers:

• Consider the work required and work procedures, to determine if there are factors in the workplace that make it more likely that bullying can occur;
• Focus on the systems of work rather than on the individuals;
• Conduct a survey of employees on the issues of workplace bullying;
• Monitor patterns of absenteeism, sick leave, staff turnover, grievances, injury reports and other such records to establish any regular patterns or sudden unexplained changes;
• Monitor deterioration in workplace relationships between employees, clients or managers; and
• Monitor feedback from exit interviews or feedback given directly from managers/supervisors or any other internal or external party.

This identification checklist has been developed to assist employers and Health and Safety Representatives to assess whether or not bullying behavior has potential in the workplace. Download the Identification Checklist (PDF, 296 KB).

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Step Two – Assessing the Risk Factors

The second step involves determining, in consultation with those affected, the specific behaviours and circumstances that may result in incidents of workplace bullying and assessing the likelihood of these behaviours affecting the health, safety and welfare of employees.

Employers should check whether the following situations are occurring, or have been identified through the process undertaken in Step 1:

• Repeated and unjustified criticism, that is targeted at an individual or individuals, rather than at work performance;
• Threats of punishment for no justifiable reason;
• Overloading a particular person with too much work or an unreasonable share of unpleasant jobs;
• Unwarranted or unjustified constant checking of an employee’s work quality, output or whereabouts;
• Humiliating a person through criticism, sarcasm and/or insults, especially in front of other staff, customers or clients;
• Denying opportunities for training, promotion, interesting jobs or assignments;
• Deliberately withholding information necessary for a person to be able to perform work to the required standard;
• Sabotaging a particular person’s work;
• Excluding a particular person from workplace social events;
• Spreading gossip or false rumor about a particular person;
• Dangerous practical jokes or forms of ritual humiliation, including initiations.

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Step Three – Controlling the Risk Factors

The third step involves developing and implementing strategies and plans to minimise and control the risks relating to workplace bullying. It is recommended that these include:

• Developing a Workplace Bullying Policy;
• Establishing expectations of appropriate behaviour and the consequences for failing to comply with expectations of appropriate behaviour;
• Developing a complaint handling and investigation procedure
• Providing training, education, information and awareness for all employees on workplace bullying;
• Ensuring that managers (and persons of responsibility) are aware of the responsibilities they have to assist the employer in complying with their obligations;
• Nominating a contact officer(s) within the workplace and providing training for the role;
• Providing clear job descriptions that include an outline of the specific roles and responsibilities for each position within the workplace;
• Keeping statistical records and information relating to productivity, absenteeism, grievances, work related injuries, customer complaints, disciplinary actions and so on.

The strategies and plans that are used to minimise or control the risks relating to workplace bullying need to suit the specific size and structure of the workplace, as well as being realistic and achievable. They should be designed to create long-term change within the workplace and not used as a quick fix for the problem.

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Step Four – Evaluation and Review

The fourth step involves the ongoing review and evaluation of the specific strategies and plans that have been implemented into a workplace to prevent and control workplace bullying. The evaluation and review process should ensure that the strategies implemented are effective in preventing or minimising incidents of workplace bullying within the workplace.

If the strategies have not been effective, it is important that further analysis of the situation occurs in order to determine how the employer can rectify the situation. Recognising and removing the risks is not a once-off process. Employers should ensure that the four-step process is a continual cycle within their workplace in order to prevent workplace bullying from recurring.

If you have a Health and Safety Representative or Health and Safety Committee consultation with them should be part of the processes used to develop anti-bullying strategies and the ongoing monitoring and review of the effectiveness of the strategies. The functions of an elected Health and Safety Representative include liaising with employees on health, safety and welfare matters, and reporting to the employer any hazard or potential hazard to which employees might be exposed. Where there is a Health and Safety Committee, the Health and Safety Representative may refer the matter to the Health and
Safety Committee.

If workplace bullying is reported, the employer should consider the extent to which the Health and Safety Representative should be involved in resolving the issue, and the rights of both parties to confidentiality pending investigation. The workplace policy and procedures should address both of these issues.