A very interesting piece in the Irish Times today (link below) on the very difficult topic of bullying and how it can be prevalent in work, schools and every day life due to the emergence and growing popularity of social media. It is no longer the case that once you leave work or school, that “bullying” disappears. Cyberbullying is now a big issue in Irish society,
We are often asked for advice when an employee feels they are being bullied at work. There are numerous free resources which highlight and explain what is meant by bullying at work and most importantly what is also not considered to be bullying at work. The Health and Safety Authority have excellent resources https://www.hsa.ie/eng/workplace_health/bullying_at_work/ as well as the Workplace Relations Commission.
There is no specific piece of legislation in Ireland dealing specifically with bullying but rather there are a number of other pieces of legislation which can be used when dealing with complaints or claims such as the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, the Unfiar Dismissal Act 1977 (as amended) where constructive dismissal may arise and related Acts.
It is important to take advice early on, whether an employee or employer, to determine how a complaint of bullying should be made or dealt with. The new Code of Practice on Bullying at Work introduced deals with both an informal and formal procedure in respect of complaints made and a link can be found here https://www.workplacerelations.ie/en/what_you_should_know/codes_practice/code-of-practice-for-employers-and-employees-on-the-prevention-and-resolution-of-bullying-at-work/
