Many workplace grievances submitted for investigation pertain to a belief that a person’s manager is bullying them and engaging in unreasonable behaviour. We all have different perceptions and therein often lies the problem. A person making a complaint can perceive a request or action to be unreasonable on the basis that they may; feel singled out, humiliated, dislike being questioned about their conduct or performance or view feedback as nit-picking.
Bullying is the attempt to oppress, torment, domineer or coerce someone else. It can take many forms such as verbal threats, insults and cyberbullying. These behaviours have deeply harmful and sometimes deadly consequences. Sadly bullying is not something that all people grow out of once they reach adulthood, so keeping employees safe from this kind of unkind treatment at work is a current and serious concern. At just 14 years
Rates of sexual assault and harassment as well as threatening or abusive conduct have been declining in the public sector. Worryingly however, reports of bullying, racism and discrimination are on the increase. The annual WA Public Sector Commission 2016/17 report revealed that 534 minor misconduct complaints were received during that year. Comprising of 969 separate allegations, 64% (621 complaints) were regarding staff behaviour with almost one third of those
