Workplace bullying can have fatal consequences, as this report from The Age, reveals.
A 19-year-old girl took her own life after months of degrading treatment at the hands of work colleagues.
As a manager I have only once encountered a complaint of workplace bullying.
I took it very seriously because I immediately believed the person making the complaint.
She was a vulnerable type, fairly quiet, but always sincere. The person she complained about was the opposite and I had her under observation for a range of reasons to do with productivity, ethics and performance.
The complainant didn’t want me to raise the bullying allegation with the bully, because she feared for her physical and mental wellbeing.
My response was to sack the bully.
I consulted higher management and they agreed with my conclusion.
The bully had already been given one warning and I had enough reason to give her another.
I really needed three warnings and a few more months to sack her legally without unfair dismissal repercussions.
The risk of industrial consequences seemed a reasonable one to take given the gravity of the situation.
Everything was ultimately concluded as well as could be expected under the circumstances. The victim was very grateful to me, grew in confidence and went on to become a valuable, skilled employee.
It wasn’t summary justice on my part. I had sufficient information to believe the allegation was true, but not enough evidence to prove it, especially without the victim’s testimony.
So I followed my instincts and used commonsense.
It bothers me that unfair dismissal laws in Australia are an ideological football between Liberal and Labor.
The Liberals went too far with “Work Choices” and Labor has gone too far the opposite way in removing an employer’s discretion to dismiss.
This wasn’t the reason for what happened to Brodie Panlock, but certainly an employer with concerns about workplace bullying has limited options, especially when the bullying is one on one, psychological, verbal and subtle.
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I strongly admire you for supporting the victim and getting rid of the bully. If someone is bullied and they feel they have people on their side, I think it’s much less traumatic.
I suspect what leads people to suicide is the a) idea that no one believes them b) the belief that it’s their fault…that they deserve what’s happening to them. c) the feeling that they have no control over the situation.
The problem is that it’s usually not just a relationship between a bully and their target. The bully often has supporters cheering them on. And then there’s the quiet bystanders who do nothing. All that can make a person feel hopeless….and sometimes suicidal.