One teacher in three claims to have been bullied at work.
75 per cent of these victims are women.
Some common examples of bullying at work include:
Allocation of additional workload.
Withholding of work responsibility.
Changing priorities and objectives unreasonably.
The imposition of practical deadlines.
Excessive and unreasonable supervision.
Unnecessary invoking of disciplinary or capability procedures.
Abuse and undue criticism in front of colleagues and pupils.
Bullying at work can take various forms:
Physical (at worst, assault).
Verbal (shouting, swearing, public reprimands).
Non-verbal (ostracising, setting impossible objectives, persistent
intrusion into lessons, unreasonable allocation of duties and
inappropriate eye contact).
If a teacher is being bullied they should take steps, which could
include:
Keeping records.
Confronting the bully regarding their behaviour.
Complaining to a higher authority.
Keeping copies of any bullying memos.
Establishing the status of any meeting.
Raising the issue with teacher/staff governors.
Recording where incidences lead to illness requiring sick leave or
counselling.
A note to all Heads / Line managers Be
aware of any change in staff e.g.. When cheerfulness turns to
sullenness. Conduct a stress audit to verify if there are any
unexplained changes. Hold meetings with your staff on a one on one
basis. Ask staff who are leaving if they have been bullied while
working at the school.
SPEAK WITH YOUR HEAD OF DEPARTMENT, TRUSTED COLLEAGUE OR THE HEAD
TEACHER.
