Dealing with Workplace Bullying - A Workers Guide

Workplace bullying is a risk to health and safety because it may affect the mental and physical health of workers. Failure to take steps to manage the risk of workplace bullying can result in a breach of Work Health and Safety (WHS) laws. Everyone at the workplace has a work health and safety duty and can help to prevent workplace bullying. Under WHS laws, while at work, workers must take reasonable care that their behaviour does not adversely affect the health and safety of other persons. Workers must also comply, so far as is reasonably practicable, with any reasonable instruction given by the person conducting the business or undertaking (PCBU) and co-operate with reasonable policies and procedures of the PCBU that the worker has been notified of, such as a workplace bullying policy. This guide is intended to help workers determine if workplace bullying is occurring and how to prevent and deal with it. It provides information for workers who may be experiencing or witnessing workplace bullying and for those who have had a bullying report made against them.