Most of the workplace bullying attention in Australia in recent years has focussed on the white-collar industries and the relationship to stress, workload, harassment and policies for respect. A case reported in the The Age newspaper on 29 April 2010 about bullying in a door frame company is reflective of apprentice bullying cases of over a decade ago but also illustrates the potential complexity of this workplace hazard. Continue reading “Inter-related issues of workplace bullying”
Category: violence
Australian MP mentions workplace bullying but is short on practical controls
On 18 March 2010, the last sitting day of that session of Australia’s Parliament, Labor Member of Parliament , Bill Shorten, spoke about workplace bullying and the OHS prosecutions that stemmed from the bullying and suicide of Brodie Panlock. Some of his short speech rehashed details of the workplace bullying prosecutions but, according to the draft of Hansard (page 93), Shorten made some useful remarks:
“I rise to speak on the issue of workplace bullying. We would not think it was acceptable for people to come to work and be exposed to asbestos or toxic chemicals. We should not think, therefore, that it is appropriate for them to be exposed to the toxic behaviour that is sustained and malicious bullying. I believe that this kind of bullying is something which can be eradicated. We have changed attitudes on smoking in the workplace and on sexual harassment; there is no reason why we cannot eliminate forever bullying in the workplace.
Bullying is an absence of kindness and Continue reading “Australian MP mentions workplace bullying but is short on practical controls”
Workplace bullying and restorative justice – how to help the families left behind
A feature article on workplace bullying in The Age newspaper on 10 March 2010 has the additional or secondary benefit of again raising the relevance of “restorative justice” to the issue of occupational safety and health.
The main element of the article is the McGregor family who had two children commit suicide over related issues. The son, Stuart McGregor, described as being chronically depressed, was being bullied at work. He confided in his sister, Angela McGregor, over the issues. Angela had been bullied at school. Alannah killed herself. A month later, Stuart followed.
WorkSafe investigated the bullying at Stuart’s place of work, substantiated Stuart’s claims are is determining what further action to take. The newspaper reports that there may be insufficient evidence to pursue the case through the Courts.
What the reporter, Helen Westerman, does is to relate the grief and hurt of the parents to the potential benefits of the application of “restorative justice” in workplace incidents. Continue reading “Workplace bullying and restorative justice – how to help the families left behind”
Good bullying advice needs grounding in prevention
Recently SafetyAtWorkBlog discussed the quality of media releases on OHS matters. A very good one was received the other day from Firefly Marketing. The noticeable quality of this release is that although its purpose is to promote a conference, the release provides fresh and unique comments that have stand-alone benefits.
The statement includes several comments concerning workplace bullying.
Regulator
WorkSafe Victoria‘s media manager, Michael Birt says
“The death of Brodie Panlock has received the most media attention of any WorkSafe Victoria prosecution – ever. The case was covered extensively by Australia’s national media but was even reported in countries from the Netherlands to Russia. The details will stay on Google forever. The actions of Brodie’s tormentors will follow them.” Continue reading “Good bullying advice needs grounding in prevention”
New OHS resources on workplace bullying
The Australian Capital Territory has released a package of new OHS material on workplace bullying. The package includes
“advice on responsibilities under the Work Safety Act 2008 with regard to bullying- a Checklist for Employers
- Guidance on how to take a risk management approach to workplace bullying, as is required by the Work Safety Act 2008
- Guidance on how to implement a complete Complaint Resolution process in respect of workplace bullying
- two new training programs available from the Office of the Work Safety Commissioner – Workplace Bullying Awareness for workers and Prevention and Management of Workplace Bullying for more senior staff Continue reading “New OHS resources on workplace bullying”
OHS and the death of Brodie Panlock from bullying
On 8 February 2010, four workers at Café Vamp, a small restaurant in Melbourne Victoria, were fined a total of $A335,000 for repeatedly bullying, or allowing bullying to occur to, 19-year-old Brodie Panlock. Brodie jumped from a building in September 2006. Her family watched Brodie die from head injuries three days later. They were unaware that Brodie was being bullied at work.
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“Respect Agenda” – seriously?
Recently the Victorian Premier, John Brumby reshuffled his Cabinet and created a new portfolio the “Respect Agenda”. The Minister with responsibility for the portfolio is ex-footballer Justin Madden. Very little has been revealed about the agenda, which has been launched after a major international kerfuffle over serious racist attacks against Indian students. It is likely to be relevant that 2010 is an election year for Victoria.
It is useful to consider these political pledges in the light of the workplace-related suicide of Brodie Panlock in 2006. Continue reading ““Respect Agenda” – seriously?”