If the bully is a colleague, tell your employer about the situation. They have a duty to resolve the problem. But what can you do when your employer is the bully?
Mr T., aged 15, faced this situation in his first full time job as an apprentice sign writer. His employer, Mr M. began to use derogatory language towards him, calling him “a worthless piece of sh**” and telling him he was stupid because he had stupid parents. Mr T. felt unable to say anything to Mr M. because he was intimidated by his boss, who was of a bigger build and was quick to anger. The situation escalated to the point where Mr M. would abuse Mr T, in front of customers and would deliberately elbow and bump into Mr T, when he walked past.
Eventually Mr M. yelled at Mr T. to “get out and don’t come back”. Mr T. walked home from work and did not return.
The Employment Relations Authority held that this was an unjustified summary dismissal and awarded Mr T. $5,000 compensation for the detrimental effects of Mr M.’s “completely inexcusable” behaviour.
Mr T. suffered from depression, embarrassment and low self-esteem after being subjected to this abuse. As the Authority noted, “No parent would wish their young adult to be introduced to the workforce in this way”. However, dealing with bullying bosses is difficult, especially in small businesses.
My advice:
- Find out if your colleagues agree that you are being targeted. It is helpful to have an objective person’s perspective.
- Try to approach your employer and let them know their behaviour is unacceptable. You could have a support person present.
- Be careful not to be more confrontational than necessary.
- If you belong to a union, your union representative would be an ideal person to help you deal with this problem.
- If the bully is unapproachable, or does not respond well to your complaint, contact the Department of Labour for help.
- If the problem cannot be resolved, contact your lawyer. They can help you leave your employment in the most advantageous way possible.
