Advice and support

If you are being bullied at work you should not suffer in silence but should seek immediate advice from your union representative. Bullying is a severe offence that must be taken seriously by employers. People's complaints must be dealt with swiftly and sensitively. Confronting a bully on you own is not easy and is only effective in the early stages. The longer the bullying goes on, the harder it becomes to confront the bully yourself.

  • Actions that you can take yourself and that will help the union take up your case include:
    Log all incidents of bullying - dates, times, nature of incident, details of slurs, accusations, criticisms, etc - making sure you stick to the facts. Keep these facts in a safe place at home, not at work. 
  • Incidents that result in sickness absence should also be logged in the workplace accident book.
  • Write down your feelings at the time and your response.
  • Recognise that you may need considerable emotional support and in some cases medical support. This should be sought as early as possible.
  • If you cannot confront the bully, try writing a memo/email to make it clear why you object to their behaviour. Keep copies of the memo/email and any replies.
  • Keep copies of all annual appraisals and letters/memos/emails relating to your ability to do the job.
  • Try to get witnesses to bullying incidents - try to avoid situations where you are alone with the bully.
  • Find out if you are the only person being bullied or whether other people are also affected and try to make a collective complaint.
  • Talk to colleagues and see if they will support you.
  • Make sure that you know exactly what your job description is so that you can check whether the responsibilities you are given, match it.
  • Find out if your employer has a policy on harassment or unacceptable behaviour, which may cover bullying.
  • Make sure you have an independent witness with you at all meetings, official or unofficial, with management representatives.
  • Stand firm and don't let yourself be a victim.

If you want some help and advice about dealing with bullying, you can do the following:

Telephone the Andrea Adams helpline on (01273) 704 900

If you are an Amicus member you can visit the Amicus website for more contacts.

You may also find these links helpful:

Health and Safety Executive
www.hse.gov.uk

TUC
www.tuc.org.uk

ACAS
www.acas.org.uk

Department of Trade and Industry
www.dti.gov.uk