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A recent court case in Victoria with fines totaling to $330,000 has shown how seriously the courts are now taking bullying allegations. If you have knowledge of inappropriate behaviour... you can't just sweep it under the carpet and pretend it's not happening. Otherwise you can end up... being prosecuted and facing significant penalties,” said Sparke Helmore special counsel, Adam Saunders. 

The recent workplace bullying case resulted in the prosecution of a cafe owner and three employees following the suicide of an 18-year-old waitress who was repeatedly criticised and insulted at work.

Fines totaled to $250,000 for failure to maintain a safe work environment, with the employees

fined between $10,000 and $45,000 each - among the highest ever issued to individuals in Victoria – and these amounts would have been much higher had they not pleaded guilty to the charges.

The case came shortly after the Productivity Commission reported that workplace bullying and harassment are not given the same attention as the management of physical hazards at work. WorkSafe has since launched a new campaign - "Silence will no longer be tolerated” aimed at eliminating workplace bullying.

Saunders indicated employers and employees have an obligation to report, control and work towards eliminating cases of bullying in the workplace and inappropriate behaviour.

To monitor and reduce workplace bullying, every organisation should consider:

•    policies dealing specifically with bullying and harassment, including IT policies, and instructions and

procedures about reporting bullying and harassment;
•    measures for intervention and investigation by management when bullying/harassment allegations are made or an incident comes to their attention
•    ongoing monitoring and reviews as part of a process of continual improvement of workplace safety standards

IDEAS FOR ACTION:

Need to implement training to inform your people on the consequences of Workplace Bullying?

MIND RESOURCES offers a range of films on these topics. Popular titles include:

Workplace Bullying… Who Wins
Email Use & Abuse
The High Price of Discrimination

Workplace Harassment

He Said… She Said… (Sexual Harassment)