The Australian state of Victoria has made workplace bullying into a criminal offence, punishable by up to ten years imprisonment. The law change is a legacy of Brodie Panlock, who in 2006 at age 19 committed suicide after being victimised by colleagues at Cafe Vamp in Hawthorn. “Our family has been fighting to have workplace bullying the subject of criminal charges for a year plus,” her father Damien Panlock told the Sydney Morning Herald.
The new law amends stalking legislation to include workplace and “cyber” bullying. “Nothing’s ever too late ... If this can save someone else’s family ... in the future, if the law is good enough for that, fine.” said Panlock. “If someone else can be protected from scum like these people, and they know that they are going to be charged, and they are going to have jail time, they might think twice”. Brodie's bullies have not been charged with any crime, their actions being in a “grey area” prior to the new legislation.
The case has revealed what journalist Helen Westerman described as an “ugly but under-reported reality in our working lives.” she spoke to Allanah McGregor, the mother of Stuart McGregor, another young worker who took his own life after persistent bullying in the restaurant he worked at. Her initial response was “it's not right, but you're an apprentice, you're going to have to put up with it for a while”. Today she regrets giving her son that advice, now aware the bullying was much more serious that the jokes people entering the workforce experience.
A problem everywhere
Unite Vice President Shanna Olsen-Reader says in an e-mail interview that workplace bullying is also a problem in New Zealand. “I only have anecdotal experience to rely on but it seems to me that it bullying in the workplace is pretty common. Bullying can take many forms and I'm not sure that New Zealanders have a full understanding of what bullying actually is or how to combat it if it happens to them or their colleagues.” She described Victoria's new anti-bullying laws as “an ambulance at the bottom of the cliff situation.”
“We need to as a country come up with some clearer definitions of workplace bullying, as well as better processes to deal with complaints. It's obvious that the system we have isn't working so it's time to make some changes. If we have clearer obligations for employers to educate their people and protect their staff from harm and we have processes in place to actually enforce it then we will have a way to actually make some progress in this area.”
Finding solutions
She recommends that workers who find themselves victims of bullying contact their union. “It's so much easier when you have people who are used to dealing with these situations and it's better not to go through it alone. They have the resources to help you and can walk you through your options.” She has started a Facebook group to raise awareness of the issue. “I have seen too many things that are just so wrong I felt responsible and had to do something about it. I want to test the water to see if bullying really is as prevalent as it seems or if I've just been unlucky.”
“Bullying can't be fixed overnight by just one person. There's no magic bullet. We need to do this together.”
Sources
Westerman, Helen, "In harms way" Sydney Morning Herald, 2010-03-10
Butcher, Steve, "Brodie's suicide prompts law on bullying", Sydney Morning Herald, 2010-03-05
Join the Conversation