‘Tip of the iceberg’

Bullying and mental health in the workplace

Tom Martin, Special Counsel

Norton Rose Fulbright Australia

11 June 2014

Do you agree?

Bullying is the key workplace health and safety issue of our time.

Federal Parliament’s 2012 report into bullying

The numbers tell a story

• There are extensive statistics on bullying:

– Number of people bullied each year in Australia between 400,000 and 2 million

– 1 in 4 employed workers say they have been bullied

– 2.5 - 5 million Australians will experience workplace bullying at some point during their

career

– Productivity Commission’s estimate of cost of bullying to Australian businesses is

between $6 - $36 billion per year.

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Bullying’s the ‘tip of the iceberg’ of psychological health

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The multiple legal consequences of bullying

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Bullying

Workers Compensation

Discrimination

Unfair Dismissal

Work Health and Safety

FWC anti-bullying

Criminal law

The Bullying Spectrum

“Initiation

rites”

Physical

assault

SUBTLE OBVIOUS

Ostracising

Favouritism

Unwarranted/

Excessive

criticism

Unfair

allocation

of tasks

Name

calling

Denial of

benefits

196029456

Snapshot of the new federal anti-bullying laws

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A worker who reasonably

believes they have been bullied, can apply for an order

to make the bullying stop.

Bullying happens when:

An individual or group repeatedly behaves

unreasonably towards a worker or group; &

The behaviour creates a risk to health and

safety;

But does NOT include reasonable

management action, taken in a reasonable

manner.

The Commission can make an order to stop bullying if:

It is satisfied the worker has been bullied at

work; and there is a risk it will continue.

The Commission must take into

account:

The outcomes of any investigation into the

matter

The availability of any dispute procedure

available

Any other matter

Mandatory Risk Management

Regulatory requirement to:

Identify workplace hazards

including bullying

Identify causes of bullying

Assess risks and implement controls to:

• Eliminate bullying; or

• Reduce bullying to the extent reasonably practicable

Monitor and review for ongoing appropriateness

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Identify bullying risk factors – Generic Workplace Risks

•Significant technological change

•Restructuring or redundancy

•Change in work methods

•Outsourcing

Organizational change

•Autocratic leadership (strict and directive)

•Unstructured leadership styles (inadequate or inconsistent supervision, poor delegation or guidance)

Negative leadership styles

•Lack of resources, training and role definition

•Unreasonable timeframes and hours

Lack of appropriate work systems

•Criticism and other negative interactions

• Interpersonal conflict

Poor workplace relationships

•Young, new, mature, apprentices, injured workers, piece workers and minorities Vulnerable workers

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Identify bullying risk factors – specific issues

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Hazard reports

Issues raised by WHS representatives

Workplace data - sick leave, transfer requests, resignations.

Results from workplace culture surveys and exit questionnaires

Sources of workers’ compensation claims

Patterns of worker complaints and grievances (formal and informal)

Assessing Bullying Risk Factors

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Bullying Risk Assessment

Organisational Change

• change in supervisor/manager

• significant technological change

• restructuring

• downsizing

• change in work method/s

• outsourcing

• plan all change

• consult with workers affected as early

possible

• develop and maintain effective

communication throughout the change

• seek and act on feedback throughout

the change

• review and evaluate change

processes

Negative leadership styles

Autocratic

Characterised by styles that are strict and

directive, workers not being involved in

decision making, not allowing flexibility

Laissez-faire

Characterised by inadequate or absent

supervision, responsibilities inappropriately

and informally delegated to subordinates,

little or no guidance provided to

subordinates

• management accountability for positive

leadership style

• management supervision, support and

training

• leadership coaching, including providing

constructive feedback, communication

skills, democratic/participative leadership

• mentor and support new and poor

performing managers

• regular feedback provided on

management performance (including

feedback from workers under

supervision), feedback acted on

• implement and review performance

improvement/development plans

• provide regular leadership skills update

training (e.g. yearly)

• include leadership questions (e.g.

conduct and performance) in exit

interviews and worker opinion surveys

Work environment risk

identification

Risk assessment Risk control measures

Long-term stability,

predictability,

continuity, certainty

High levels of unplanned

and reactive change;

change that creates

confusion, ambiguity,

uncertainty

Democratic

Collaborative,

consultative, treats staff

fairly, interpersonal

interactions supportive

and positive, accessible

and communicates

effectively

Autocratic

Task emphasis, lack of

involvement of workers

with decision making,

strict, directive, lacks

trust, poor delegation,

tight control, poor

interpersonal skills

Democratic

Collaborative,

consultative, treats staff

fairly, interpersonal

interactions supportive

and positive, accessible

and communicates

effectively

Laissez-faire

Lack of direction, lack of

supervision, absence of

role clarity, lack of

responsibility, lack of

support/systems/

procedures

Lower risk Higher risk

Lack of appropriate work systems

• lack of resources

• lack of experience

• lack of role definition

• uncertainty about job roles and way

work should be done

• poorly designed rostering

• unreasonable performance measures

or timeframes

• lack of support systems

• develop and implement standard

operating procedures

• review and monitor work loads and

staffing level

• review resource availability

• redesign and clearly define jobs

• reduce excessive working hours

• seek regular feedback from staff over

concerns about roles and

responsibilities

Poor workplace relationships

• critical and negative interactions

• negative relationships between

supervisors and subordinates

• interpersonal conflict

• workers excluded

• develop and implement a conflict

management process

• provide training (e.g. diversity and

tolerance, addressing conflict in the

workplace, interpersonal communication

and interaction)

• ensure supervisors act on inappropriate

behaviour

Workplace characteristics

Vulnerable workers/staff , including:

• young workers

• new workers

• apprentices

• injured workers and workers on return to

work plans

• workers who are in a minority due to

cultural and religious difference

• piece workers

• workers in a minority because of ethnicity,

disability, political views, gender or sexual

preference

• develop and implement systems to

support and protect vulnerable staff

• train workers (e.g. valuing workplace

diversity and tolerance)

• train line mangers to deal with workers at

higher risk

• implement a contact officer system to

provide support and advice

• implement a ‘buddy’ system for new

workers

• monitor workplace relationships

Assessing Bullying Risk Factors (con’t)

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Bullying Risk Assessment (Continued)Work environment risk

identification

Risk assessment

Lower risk Higher risk

Risk control measures

Clearly defined roles

and responsibilities,

clear work

requirements,

clear lines of authority,

well organised,

realistic workloads

and job demands

High levels of uncertainty

around roles and

responsibility, lack of clarity

around expectations, poor

communication channels,

excessive/unrealistic work

demands

Poorly trained staff

Open communication,

clarity regarding

standards of behaviour

required, inclusion

management, resolution

process for managing

interpersonal conflicts

Unmanaged and

unresolved conflicts and

disputes, high levels of

interpersonal conflict and

disputation tolerated

Inappropriate behaviour

towards vulnerable staff

tolerated/ignored

Lack of appropriate

communication processes

to report discrimination,

abuse and improper

conduct

Lack of trust /confidence

in management's

willingness to resolve

problems

Systems to support and

monitor the integration of

workers

Accepting of differences

and diversity

Appropriate supervision

Usual Controls to Eliminate or Minimise Bullying

Implement policies that state bullying is

not tolerated.

Enforce policies against all levels of

staff.

Implement formal and informal

complaint-handling procedures that are

easily accessed.

Train all staff in the policy and procedures

Make pro-active interventions ‘at risk’ areas, e.g. training

and supervision

Conduct credible investigation into

complaints.

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Why the usual bullying controls may not be sufficient

You won’t ever eliminate unintentional, unreasonable behaviour -but you can improve workers’ resilience to it.

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Bully

Trained and

compliant

Oblivious to effect on

others

Victim

Vulnerable

Appears unaffected

Protecting and improving workplace mental health

Early intervention

• Mental Health First Aid

Culture

• Tristan Jepson Foundation - Best Practice Guidelines

Training

• Exercise, diet and fatigue

• Resilience

• CBT – Cognitive Behavioural Therapy

• Mindfulness meditation

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Mindfulness

“The faculty of voluntarily bringing back a wandering attention, over and over again, is the very root of judgment, character and will . . .

An education which should improve this faculty would be the education par excellence. But it is easier to define this ideal than to give practical directions for bringing it about.”

William James, 1890, The Principles of Psychology

Today, this faculty can be measured and improved at a clinical level.

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Growth in mindfulness research

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Mindfulness meditation – health and safety

Health benefits of Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction

• Reduces chronic pain, headaches, blood pressure, cholesterol

• Reduces stress, anxiety, depression and use of intoxicants

• Improves immune function

Performance benefits

• Improves working memory

• Reduces mind wandering

The University of California is currently undertaking a study into the effect on nurses’ safety performance after an 8 week course in MBSR that has been adjusted to focus on safe behaviours.

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Global organisations using mindfulness

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