The Cost of Workplace Bullying
Negative behaviours in the workplace impact on everyone, not just those being targeted. It impacts on families and friends of those targeted, as well as witnesses / bystanders and the organisation.
2005 WorkCover (ACT) estimated the dollar ‘cost’ of workplace bullying saying, “The financial cost of workplace bullying to business in Australia is estimated to be between $6 billion and $13 billion a year.” This includes indirect costs, such as absenteeism, labour turnover, loss of productivity and legal costs.
What is Workplace Bullying?
Bullying at work can be defined as repeated unreasonable or inappropriate behaviour directed towards a worker, or group of workers, that creates a risk to health and safety (whether intentional or unintentional)
Due to the effect on the safety and health of employees and others at the workplace, bullying is unlawful under the WHS Act 2011
Types of Bullying Behaviours
There are two main types of bullying behaviour:
- Covert behaviour (subtle bullying behaviours) undermines, treats less favourably or disempowers others
- Overt behaviour (direct bullying behaviour) is often public or observable.
What is not Bullying?
Management action that is reasonable, fair, transparent and in line with approved processes, for example:
- Setting reasonable performance goals, standards and deadlines
- Rostering and allocating working hours where the requirements are reasonable / fair
- Transferring a worker for operational reasons
- Deciding not to select a worker for promotion where a reasonable process is followed
- Informing a worker of their unsatisfactory work performance in an appropriate manner
- Informing a worker of their unreasonable or inappropriate behaviour in an objective and confidential way
- Implementing organisational changes or restructuring
- Taking disciplinary action including suspension or termination of employment
