Support for bullied and harassed staff

Good policies on bullying and harassment will provide a contact or a harassment officer or mediator to support those being bullied or harassed. Counselling to help people deal with the effects of being bullied or harassed may also be available. Union reps should ensure that their members are aware of any services that are available.

Several unions have set up hotlines for members to call confidentially if they are suffering from bullying or harassment at work.

The CWU has a harassment hotline and the PCS civil service union has a racial incident hotline for members who suffer racist incidents at work. The hotline, to be used if the local PCS rep cannot be contacted, is available 24 hours a day and is entirely confidential.

The general union Unite reports that the joint trade unions working in the forestry industry decided to act after a survey found that 16% of staff (some 500) believed that they had experienced bullying at work in the previous two years.

With the support of the employer, the unions nominated members as union bullying and harassment advisors. They now provide a support network across England, Wales and Scotland and meet up to support each other and share information — an essential part of the process. When it is necessary to take a case to a tribunal, advisors support members up to that point and then hand their case over to a full-time union official.

The unions have also circulated practical information leaflets to make it easier for members to report concerns – a members’ guide to harassment and bullying at work and a Quick Action Guide for union reps. The leaflets and the joint trade unions’ workplace website include the contact details of the union bullying and harassment advisors and the employer’s intranet site has a direct link to this website.