With employeees becoming increasingly litigious, the reasons to tackle bullying and harassment are not only moral, they are about mitigating financial and PR risks too. In an ideal world everyone would be treated with dignity and respect in the workplace, but sadly that is far from the case.
Almost 20 years after Stephen Lawrence was murdered, another public body has been accused of "institutionalised racism", this time for treatment of its workers. Central Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust has been told to pay £933,115 in damages to a manager sacked after raising a grievance about the way he was treated. What is more, the Unite union has rasied concerns about the organisation's practices: while 25% of employees dismissed for wrongdoing are black, they make up just 2% of the total workforce.
So, what can organisations do to prevent such situations arising? There is a two-pronged attack:
- Having clear policies and procedures in place, and
- Measuring and reporting on key HR data
Policies and Procedures
This is not about having a written document tucked away in a handbook that no-one reads. It means having a clearly communicated approach that all employees and managers are aware of. Policies are designed to set out an organisation's position and principles on a given matter and procedures should detail the steps that are taken when an issue arises. By conveying these messages and ensuring they are implemented in practice, emmployers can help to prevent bullying and harassment in the workplace.
- Dignity at Work
Equal opportunities should feature highly on the list. This will help to ensure that everyone understands what groups and characteristics are protected in law, what activities are unacceptable and how to ensure that people are treated fairly and consistently. It is key to help people within the organisation understand what is meant by bullying and harassment by explaining what is expected and what can be done. Whilst people are aware that physical bullying is unacceptable, the mental effects of bullying can be more difficult to define. This can include spreading rumours or gossip, being unfairly critical and ridiculing or undermining behaviour. Therefore it can be helpful to incorporate such information in a dignity at work policy.
- Health and Safety
All employers have a responsibility for the health and safety for their workers and the organisation is liable for failure to meet these requirements. Managing stress at work, as part of a wider health and safety policy, can help to ensure that the effects of bullying and harassment are managed and individuals are adequately supported. This can form part of a wider strategy on employee well-being, ensuring that the workplace supports physical and mental fitness. Having employees with a good state of general health is good for the individual and for business performance.
- Open Door
Open door policies help to ensure that employees feel able to approach any manager (not necessarily just their line manager) when they have problem. By encouraging managers to be approachable, employers can help ensure that matters do not escalate but are nipped in the bud early on before they become too serious. Sometimes, just a listening ear can help matters. This can also go some way towards ensuring that matters of wrongdoing and malpractice are dealt with internally without employees having to make a public disclosure.
- Grievance
Finally, a clear grievance policy and procedure can ensure that employers listen to employees concerns and take action where necessary. This can help prevent recourse to employment tribunal and ensure that organisations are meeting statutory obligations towards employees. Further information can be found about this from ACAS.
Measuring and Reporting HR Data
As identified in the recent case between Elliot Browne and Central Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, there was statistical evidence which demonstrated that there is a problem within the organisation. If someone had flagged that there was correlation between black employees and dismissals, action could have been taken to re-educate both employees and managers and address organisational culture.
By measuring key criteria it becomes possible to track workforce satisfaction, compliance, turnover and absence levels. Likewise it is helpful to cross reference these indicators to see if they are consistent across different groups of workers; according to any protected characteristics they may have and in different teams. This will allow the organisation to address potential risks and try to address the culture in those areas.
Pitfalls and Positives
One of the common pitfalls employers fall into is thinking that bullying is not an issue in their organisaton. Unfortunately, bullying can still be a taboo subject and simply not talking about it can mean that organisations don't become aware of a problem until it's too late.
By ensuring employees know what bullying is, and explaining the organisation's approach to tackle go a long way towards preventing issues. This helps to protect the employer from potential claims at Tribunal, and reduce impact on productivity, turnover and absence.
