In the last Bulletin, I went over the essential things that must be included in your workplace bullying policy. But there’s a lot more to managing bullying in the workplace than simply having a policy.
There are also other steps you should take to prevent bullying, discrimination and harassment occurring in your workplace:
- Make sure you encourage respectful and courteous behaviour in the workplace. One way of doing this is showing your employees that you do not support bullying.
- Put in place a thorough workplace bullying policy. Ensure that everyone in your workplace is given a copy of your bullying policy, and that you remind people about it often. (For more information on what should be included in a workplace bullying policy, please refer to last Tuesday’s Bulletin here.)
- Make sure you understand what constitutes bullying – and make sure everyone else in your workplace does too. Your employees need to know exactly what is acceptable behaviour and what is not.
- Respond as soon as possible to any evidence of inappropriate bullying behaviour.
- Monitor your workplace for any bullying constantly. You can’t just assume that bullying is not occurring in your workplace. You need to keep an eye out for warning signs, like employees taking excess amounts of leave or becoming withdrawn or looking stressed.
- Train your supervisors and managers about your workplace bullying policy, and encourage them to address any problem behaviour as soon as possible, regardless of whether or not a formal complaint has been filed.
Regards,
Charles Power
Editor-in-Chief
Employment Law Practical Handbook
