News Archive

Entire organisations-and not just individual managers and employees-might be to blame for workplace bullying, according to a recent article by the UWA Business School's Dr Jacquie Hutchinson.

Published in the Journal of Industrial Relations, Dr Hutchinson's article outlines the results of interviews conducted with 32 public sector employees, including senior managers, employee advocates and policy implementers.

Towards a broader definition of workplace bullying
Emerging from the in-depth interviews was one common theme: narrow explanations of workplace bullying are limiting our ability to fix the problem.

With the Productivity Commission estimating that workplace bullying costs Australia between $6 billion and $36 billion every year, Dr Hutchinson says it is important to recognise that workplace bullying extends beyond psychology to include organisational, employment and cultural factors.

This broadened definition was recognised in a recent report from a federal parliamentary inquiry into workplace bullying. While identifying specific bullying behaviours such as undue criticism, setting unreasonable deadlines, and spreading malicious rumours, the report also stated: "A key concern throughout the inquiry has been the lack of available information on what is, and what is not, workplace bullying."

Drawing on the findings of the enquiry, the Federal Government and Opposition have recognised the significance of the issue and recently supported the inclusion of workforce bullying provisions in the Fair Work Act. According to Dr Hutchinson, this amendment will have the potential to test the definitions of workplace bullying and require employers to look beyond individual conduct to the effects of organisational processes and working environments.

This amendment reflects the general agreement among Dr Hutchinson's study participants that workplace bullying may include issues such as workloads, redundancies, and pay scales, in addition to more commonly recognised bullying behaviours such as use of abusive language or excluding an individual.

One senior manager explained: "I really am concerned that to some extent in the public sector, with an ‘outcomes at all costs,' the importance of personal relationships in the workplace, and building teams and all of that stuff, is often sacrificed in the attempt to meet those needs of the government, of the deadlines, or the outcomes."

Another interviewee elaborated: "Sure, you might get your ‘psycho bosses,' you might get the ‘maniacs in suits,' but they in my mind are simply a creation of the organisational pressures and the stresses that are put on them in turn."

In fact, over half of policy actors interviewed believed that there was often tacit organisational support for managers who ‘just get things done no matter what' and who used whatever means they had available to deliver greater outcomes on limited budgets.

"In short, bullying emerged from many of the accounts as a normative aspect of contemporary public sector leadership," Dr Hutchinson said.

How can we effectively address workplace bullying?
Many workplace bullying policies simply don't allow for a broader definition of bullying in which the organisation may be the perpetrator of or catalyst for bullying behaviours.

According to Dr Hutchinson, these policies are flawed.

"Current policy frameworks used for workplace bullying are unable to effectively respond to the complexity of casual elements and power relations beyond the individuals involved," she said.

This was demonstrated by one policy implementer, who stated: "The workplace bullying policy doesn't deal with those sorts of issues [workloads, redundancies, etc.]... They'll say it's their boss or work. Well, we all have too much work to do, even managers. And redundancies, well that's a management decision, isn't it, not something I can or should have to deal with.

"I'm here to help when someone claims that someone else is being awful to someone else such as shouting at them."

However, Dr Hutchinson argues that despite the challenges of broadening the definitions of workplace bullying, the recognition of the problem is a step in the right direction.

"The new workplace bullying provisions provide a real opportunity to shape effective policy responses to integrate individual behaviours, organisational processes, power relations, and employment regulatory regimes," Dr Hutchinson argues.

Ultimately, she says, embracing broader definitions of workplace bullying will lead to more effective ways of addressing the issue and create happier, more productive workplaces.

Media references

Karen Della Torre (UWA Business School)    (+61 8) 6488 8538
Verity Chia (UWA Business School)    (+61 8) 6488 1346