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The background
Bullying must stop
Bullying is persistent, intimidating and humiliating
behaviour. It is often face-to-face but can
also occur in writing, by telephone, text messaging
or email at work. Click here for UNISON's Bullying
Q&As.
It can lead to stress, depression, lowered
self-confidence and other serious health problems,
often resulting in sickness absence and the
loss of trained and experienced staff.
A recent
UNISON survey revealed that 60% of workers
have been bullied or witnessed bullying
at work over the past six months. One in four
workers said that staff cutbacks have led to
workplace bullying – double the number
from two years ago – and around half
said they would be too scared to raise concerns
during this time of job cuts.
The impact on the health of staff is enormous;
it has led to mental stress, anxiety, anger
and lowered motivation. However, due in part
to the cuts climate more than half say they
will stay in their jobs and suffer in silence – compared
to only a quarter of staff in 2009.
This is why it is important that UNISON continues
to campaign to ensure that bullying is recognised
and dealt with by employers, and that UNISON
safety reps are trained to support members
who are bullied at work.
For more information, help and advice go to
UNISON’s website at unison.org.uk.
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