Negotiating a policy

Policies and procedures are a necessary step towards tackling bullying and harassment at work. Any policy should be jointly negotiated with trade unions and must have demonstrable support from the top of the organisation to be successful. It goes without saying that any policy must also be put into practice. Many employers now have policies on bullying and harassment, but the existence of paper policies and procedures does not necessarily mean the problem is being dealt with. The research findings set out in Chapter 2 of this booklet suggest that despite the proliferation of anti-bullying and harassment policies, this type of behaviour in the workplace is widespread and, in some cases, appears to be increasing.