Seven in 10 employees have been bullied

ALMOST seven out of every 10 Irish employees have been bullied in the workplace, up almost 50% on 2003 figures.

Research released yesterday by employment law firm Peninsula Ireland found 67% of the workers surveyed had experienced bullying in the workplace. That compared with 48% in 2003.

Of those who said they had been bullied, almost 50% said they suffered the treatment at the hands of a person in management. The rest claimed they had been bullied by a colleague.

Almost two-thirds of those surveyed said their personal life had suffered as a result of the bullying.

Alan Price of Peninsula Ireland said: “You get situations in Ireland where employees fear coming into work. It is time to expose workplace bullying for what it really is, a form of harassment and in no way should it be tolerated.

“Bullying in the workplace can take on many forms and it’s not just from colleagues as it seems many workers are harassed by management.

“We urge employers to have a system in place where workers are encouraged to speak to someone if they feel bullied and where their complaint is taken seriously and acted upon.”

The research also found that 67% of workers would never consider reporting bullying to their employer and 91% were not sure whether their employer had policies relating to bullying and harassment at work.

Mr Price said: “When talking to employees it is apparent that those that are bullied by management or their employer are reluctant to work as hard as those that are not bullied.

“Silent bullying presents a major problem, where someone feels isolated when left out of group discussions and decisions.

“Employees and employers need to remember that harassment is in the eye of the recipient and the question employers need to ask is whether the situation could be considered severe enough for the employee to take legal action.”