Taking a stand against bullying at work  

Bullying is detrimental to an employee's mental and physical health. It also impacts employers who have to pay for the related costs, including sick leave and legal fees 

Bullying can lead to problems with concentration, lower performance and relationship difficulties. Picture: iStock

Andrea Campbell never imagined she would be bullied at work. Yet the 44-year-old administrator from Athboy in Co Meath was subjected to sustained verbal bullying when she worked in Northern Ireland’s education authority during her early 30s.

“A work colleague would constantly make little digs about how I wasn’t doing my job as well as the previous person who had been in the role or express surprise at the clothes I was wearing,” she says. “She gradually got into my head and her sneaky comments undermined my confidence in my work and myself.”

Campbell is one of many victims of bullying in the workplace. According to a 2018 study by the University of Galway, 9% of Irish workers have had similar experiences.

“Bullying is defined by the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) as: ‘repeated inappropriate behaviour, direct or indirect, verbal, physical or otherwise, conducted by one or more persons against another or others at the place of work and/or in the course of employment that could be reasonably regarded as undermining the individual’s right to dignity at work’,” says Dr Margaret Hodgins from the University of Galway's School of Health Science.

“In research studies measuring the prevalence of workplace bullying, we use a checklist of negative acts and behaviours. Checking at least two items weekly is taken as an indication of being bullied, and 9% of our respondents did this. That’s 230,000 people, so bullying is a big problem.”

It’s also a multi-faceted one. It affects health, primarily as a result of causing stress. Hodgins and her colleague Dr John Cullinan, director of the Centre for Economic Research on Inclusivity and Sustainability at the University of Galway, did a study investigating the impact of workplace bullying on stress levels.

“It showed employees who reported being bullied were far more likely to be stressed,” says Cullinan. “Other research has found links with post-traumatic stress disorder and problems with concentration, increased propensity to accidents, lower performance, higher alcohol consumption and relationship difficulties.”

These are just some of the possible consequences of being bullied. “Other direct costs include the time off work, medical costs for dealing with health problems, legal costs if the case goes to court and in some cases early retirement,” says Cullinan. “Indirect costs are reduced wellbeing and quality of life and poorer job performance and satisfaction.”

Campbell experienced a variety of these direct and indirect consequences. “I’d wake up every morning with a sick dread at the thought of going to work,” she says. “I eventually had to take time off due to the stress of it all.”

Her performance suffered too. “I used to think I was good at my job and knew what I was doing but I started to doubt my ability,” she says. “I still do to this day. When I receive praise from my line manager, I don’t quite believe it. That’s how long-lasting the effect has been.”

The University of Galway studies found that people working in education, the public sector and the health and social care sectors are more likely to be bullied than those in the private sector.

The studies also found that those with less power in society, such as women, ethnic minorities or members of the LGBTQ community, are bullied at higher rates.

Bullying is also more likely to occur when an organisation is undergoing change.

“The education authority was changing its structure when this happened to me,” says Campbell. “The interaction between management and staff become more impersonal.”

Like many victims of bullying, it took Campbell a while to realise what was happening. “I felt as if I couldn’t talk about it,” she says. “It was only after I changed jobs and spoke to someone outside the organisation about what had happened that it all fell into place. I hadn’t imagined it. I really had been bullied.”

Patricia Murray, HSA senior organisational psychologist

Bullying behaviours

It’s not just employees like Campbell who suffer if bullying occurs within an organisation. “Direct bullying-related costs to the employer include sickness absence, replacement costs, legal costs and HR-related costs,” says Cullinan. “There can also be reputational costs, lower morale and an impact on bystanders and witnesses.”

This impact can be significant, according to Patricia Murray, a senior organisational psychologist with the HSA, which provides information and advice on bullying for employers and employees.

“Research shows that those witnessing bullying behaviours in the workplace are more likely to leave,” she says. “They may look elsewhere for employment to avoid the feelings of guilt or fear associated with them, and they may have lowered loyalty to the organisation as a result.”

All of this affects businesses financially. Another study carried out by Cullinan and Hodgins in 2020 found that 1.7m workdays are lost in Ireland annually because of bullying. “That represents a cost to the economy of almost a quarter of a billion euros,” says Cullinan.

According to the 2005 Safety, Health and Work Act, employers are bound by law to provide a safe and healthy work environment. There is also a code of practice on workplace bullying.

“It’s the national standard and employers can use it as a template for their own anti-bullying policies, which they should then display prominently within the workplace,” says Murray.

Dr John Cullinan, director of the Centre for Economic Research on Inclusivity and Sustainability at the University of Galway

Procedures and problems

Anyone considering making an allegation of bullying should consider it carefully, advises Murray. “It’s a serious allegation, so you need to be sure. We can all be biased when it comes to interpreting others’ behaviour towards us.

“Stand back and ask yourself if it’s really bullying. Make a list of incidents that have happened, noting the time and place, exactly what happened, and if there were witnesses. What did the other person do? What did you do? You’d be surprised how many people realise that what’s happening isn’t bullying but a different sort of interpersonal problem.”

Murray also recommends asking someone else for their interpretation of the situation. “Tell someone you trust the details of what’s happened and see if they agree that you’re being bullied,” she says. “If they do, it’s time to familiarise yourself with the anti-bullying policy and procedures in your workplace.”

Once you know the procedure, you can address the problem. This could be as simple as talking to the person who has been bullying you. “Bring your list of incidents with you,” says Murray. “Tell them what they did and how that made you feel. You may be able to resolve the situation between you.”

Many people won’t feel comfortable doing this, which is why Murray’s next suggestion is to involve your line manager or HR. “Be factual about it, not emotional,” she says. “Show them your list of incidents and tell them that you want them to manage the situation, so it stops.”

Campbell wishes such an approach had been taken in her case. “But it was back in 2008 and there wasn’t the same sense of awareness then,” she says.

“There weren’t the robust anti-bullying policies there are now, and people didn’t speak out about such things. Things have changed, and I hope people being bullied today realise that they don’t have to put up with it and that support is there to help them.”