160,000 victims of workplace bullying, ESRI study finds

ALMOST 160,000 people claimed they were the victims of repeated bullying in the workplace during a six-month study by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).

The Government-commissioned survey also found that of the 7.9% of all workers who reported they had been bullied, women were almost twice as likely to be victims.

The figures represent a marginal increase on a similar survey carried out in 2001 which found that 7% of workers claimed they were bullied.

Speaking at the launch, the report’s lead author, Philip O’Connell, said the incidence of bullying in the Irish workplace was “in and around the same ballpark” as other countries in Europe.

A second survey of public and private sector employers carried out by the ESRI during the same period explored how organisations viewed the problem of bullying in their workplace in the context of bullying policies and codes of practice in those workplaces.

It found that bullying was more likely to be perceived as a problem in the public sector and in larger organisations.

The sectors of the economy where it is most prevalent were listed as education, public administration, health, social work and in companies undergoing management change.

Another dramatic finding was that slightly under half of the organisations surveyed had not heard of or were insufficiently familiar with the codes of practice.

Labour Affairs Minister Tony Killeen said he was disappointed with the findings.

“There is a need to disseminate information much more effectively,” he said. “In workplaces where there was a code in place, (bullying policies) worked very successfully.

He added: “39% of public sector employers regard bullying to be a problem, a surprisingly high level.

“I am calling on mangers in the public sector to recognise that they have a problem on their hands and to set about addressing it without delay.”

Mr Killeen said he would soon release a new code of practice, based on the stronger provisions against bullying, contained in the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005.

Fiona’s story

Fiona is 24 and has been working as a waitress for three years. Although the outlet where she works has less than five employees, the full enterprise has more than 100. She usually works 32 hours a week, four days a week. She isn’t a member of a trade union and is employed on a casual basis. The company doesn’t’ have a formal policy on bullying and handle the issue poorly. The bullying is by Fiona’s supervisor. She feels her boss has “issues” and is power hungry. It is mainly verbal and includes undermining, unreasonable assignments and excessive monitoring of her work. Bullying has caused her stress and decreased her motivation at work and her performance generally. At one stage, she considered quitting.

— From ESRI report