The Secret Silent Spaces of Workplace Violence: Focus on Bullying (and Harassment)

Allison J Ballard and Patricia Easteal
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Allison J Ballard: Faculty of Business, Government and Law, University of Canberra, ACT 2617, Australia
Patricia Easteal: Faculty of Business, Government and Law, University of Canberra, ACT 2617, Australia

Laws, 2018, vol. 7, issue 4, 1-17

Abstract: Any form of workplace abuse, be it bullying, sexual or non-sexual harassment, or other forms of workplace violence, represents a significant problem for both workers and organisations. The reality that worker complaints of such abuse are often silenced, frequently for long periods of time, has recently been spotlighted by the #MeToo movement. In this article we focus particularly on workplace bullying (some definitions include harassment). We explore how potential, and actual, complaints of such abuse may silenced—both before complaints are ever made, and also at different points along the complaint or dispute resolution process. We investigate how definitional and naming issues, worker ignorance and incapacity, workplace investigations, (alternative) dispute resolution and the legal pathways available to targets of workplace bullying and harassment may act to silence complaints. We also provide some practical suggestions for the targets of workplace abuse.

Keywords: bullying; harassment; workplace abuse; violence; silencing; naming; reporting (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D78 E61 E62 F13 F42 F68 K0 K1 K2 K3 K4 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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