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Addressing Bullying and Addressing Bullying and Harassment in the Harassment in the
WorkplaceWorkplace
Karen McIvor Ph.D.Karen McIvor Ph.D.
copyright 2007 [email protected] 2007 [email protected]
Presentation for Capita Breakfast Briefing:Presentation for Capita Breakfast Briefing:Managing Stress in the Police Managing Stress in the Police
Wednesday 25Wednesday 25thth April, 2007April, 2007
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Evidence of links to stress
• correlation between bullying/harassment and stress measures
• correlation between bullying/harassment and physiological stress response
• absence reports• case studies• HSE work
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HSE stress indicator tool (Cousins et al, 2004)
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• 12% of all police respondents had been bullied in the previous six months
• 29% of all police respondents had been bullied in the previous five years
• 45% of all police respondents had witnessed bullying in the past five years
‘‘Destructive Conflict and Bullying at Work’ Special version commissioned by Destructive Conflict and Bullying at Work’ Special version commissioned by Polfed. Hoel & Cooper (2001)Polfed. Hoel & Cooper (2001)
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• 31% of resigning or transferring officers stated that bullying and / or discrimination was relevant to their decision to leave
(Cooper & Ingram, 2004)(Cooper & Ingram, 2004)
In a recent exit poll conducted across ten Forces
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• 21% of police support staff reported they were currently being bullied UNISON, 2000UNISON, 2000
• Policing is in the top six occupations at risk of bullying Hoel & Cooper (2001)Hoel & Cooper (2001)
• 37% of police staff subjected to or witnessed racial harassment, homophobia or bullying UNISON (2003)UNISON (2003)
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High staff turnover High absenteeism High sickness rates: regular/prolonged Low morale Loss of initiative Tense atmosphere
WORKING WORKING ENVIRONMENTENVIRONMENT
EMOTIONALEMOTIONAL
Depression Anxiety Loss of confidence Loss of self-esteem Lack of motivation Irritability/ aggression Anger Suicidal thoughts
PHYSICALPHYSICAL
Sleeplessness Sweating/shaking Palpitations Lethargy Skin complaints Stomach/bowel problem Headaches/ migraine Nausea Panic attacks Excessive tiredness
Taken from Police Federation in England & Wales policy document on bullying
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Management Indicators of Bullying – Lots of Ideas
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Event Hierarchy
Legal redress
Formal complaint
Informal complaint
Informal enquiry
Bad behaviour
PREVENTION
INTERVENTION
AMELIORATION
RESTORATION and LEARNING
after Rayner & McIvor (2006)
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POLICIESPOLICIES
• Not all Forces have a specific policy addressing bullying and harassment
• The general thrust of policies is that bullying/harassment will not be tolerated
• Responsibility for carrying out any such policy is variously located in managers, supervisors and all members of the Service
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Policy
• Policies are good because they give the individual confidence that the problem will be dealt with.
• if there aren’t procedures or policies then members of an organisation may think that they haven’t got a chance of talking about or dealing with bullying and harassment
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Policy – not all positive…• Policies may be interpreted in
such a way that there is no room for manoeuvre. The policy is applied rigidly with no consideration of individual case requirements.
• Policies can be seen as hollow gestures giving the impression that the matter is taken seriously and that the organisation cares about its members, but actually there in order to tick boxes and to protect the organisation
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Constructing a good policy1. Analyse requirements and
set criteria
2. Source the policy carefully
3. Development or adaptation through partnership
4. Short and simply written documentation
5. Communication with explanation
6. Evaluation and regular review
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Communication, Awareness Raising, Training
• Policies by themselves are not much use if they sit on a shelf and nothing is done to draw attention to them.
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Applying the policy
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Even within highly controlled organisations, there are often slight differences in the way that the business of the day is conducted. Do not assume that all parts of the organisation will apply or disseminate the policies in the same way.
How are you going to evaluate your policy?
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Tackling bullying and harassment requires a strategic approach
Policy is a good start, but it is not the full solution
Karen McIvor, Ph.D. Bullying999.co.uk Copyright Karen McIvor 2007