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Bullying and Harassment Vs Reasonable Management Action
Heidi Smith
24th,Oct, 2014
Bullying and Harassment Claims against Managers
on the Rise
Protecting your manager’s right to performance manage.
A staggering 70% of claims of bullying and harassment are from employees towards their managers. Changes to the Fair Work Act mean that complaints are not subject to the scrutiny of a third party and require more rigorous investigations.
The majority of claims of bullying and harassment made are not substantiated but these claims can cost your organisation a lot of time and money.
The worker genuinely feels aggrieved and believes their complaint is bullying but often it is not.
All bullying and harassment allegations need to be investigated thoroughly from the beginning to the end.
Bullying and harassment claims on the rise
One of the major reasons for the rise of unsubstantiated bullying and harassment claims is that there is a lack of clarity about the meaning of bullying and harassment. The definition of bullying needs to be translated into practical terms for all workers. What is bullying? What is not bullying? What types of inappropriate behaviour constitute or don’t constitute bullying? How do you deal with inappropriate behaviour if it is not bullying?
Bullying and harassment vs reasonable management action
The Fair Work Act protects managers from a bullying claim if they are carrying out reasonable management actions in a reasonable manner. Reasonable management action includes:
- Performance appraisals
- Measuring under performance
- Counselling workers for misconduct and implementing discipline about that.
- Modifying workers duties
It is important that your employees understand that reasonable management action is not bullying and that managers know how to carry out reasonable management actions in a reasonable way.
A resolution training and consultation services can help you prevent, manage and respond to workplace bullying and harassment claims through the following services:
1. Bullying and harassment training for employees and managers (in-house)
2. G rievance management and investigation
(training and consulting)
3. Performance management and disciplinary training
Our in training starts at $300/pp minimum booking of 10 people.
If you would like more information PH 1300 ARESOLVE to book a complimentary consultation
