Ulster University Joins the Fight against Workplace Bullying
State Pension Crisis for Women
Work Related Violence
Free Advice and Guidance on Equal Pay Reviews
Back Breaking Work
Workplace Bullying – Mountain or Molehill?
Fixed Term Contracts – Tribunal Success
Amicus Equal Rights Web SiteUlster University Joins the Fight against Workplace Bullying
The University of Ulster has announced an innovative research project to investigate Workplace Bullying in the Media Industries across the UK . The three year research programme will investigate the prevalence and scope of workplace bullying across all sectors within the media industries. For further information, please contact Jan Martin at research@bullyatwork.com .
State Pension Crisis for Women
There are more than 2 million women in the U.K. who are facing pensioner poverty in later life because they do not qualify for a basic state pension, this could be because they do not earn enough or have had gaps in their working life. The report from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) highlights the discrepancies between the pension income women and men receive from both state and private pension schemes. The report clearly shows that inequalities of income in retirement cannot be tackled in isolation from inequality during working life. Women are also less likely to have a private pension than men. In total, 38% of working age women are paying into a private pension scheme, compared to 46% of men. Mike Robinson, Amicus National Officer commented “this is an excellent report; it provides the evidence of the inequality in the present pension system, an issue that Amicus has campaigned against for many years. The current pension structure needs a radical overhaul, why should women be financially penalised for pay inequality and/or carrying the burden of caring for their family” For further information and to download a copy of the report ‘Women and Pension’ please go to www.dwp.gov.uk/resourcecentre/
Work Related Violence
The Home Office has recently published the latest figures for 2003/4 and 2004/5 on work related violence from the British Crime Survey (BCS) The survey defines work related violence as any incident in which a person is abused, threatened or assaulted in circumstances relating to their work. This can include verbal abuse or threats as well as physical attacks. The latest figures suggest that there has been a steady fall in the reporting of work place violence since a peak of 1.3 million incidents in 1995, although there has been a slight rise in 2004/5, with 655,000 incidents over 2003/4, when there were 451,000 recorded incidents. The Home Office says the increase between 2003/4 and 2004/5 is likely to reflect the especially low rate of recorded incidents in 2003/4 and natural variations over time but is nevertheless an important reminder of the need to continue to address the causes of work related violence. If you would like further information about the BCS report please go to www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs/occ-violencework.pdf for further information about work related violence and how to tackle it please go to www.amicustheunion.org/default.aspx?page=2384
Free Advice and Guidance on Equal Pay Reviews
The TUC is offering free advice and guidance to employers who are willing to undertake equal pay reviews in partnership with unions. The initiative has been set up with financial support from the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). Employers and union reps can attend a tailored three-hour expert session with an independent specialist to explore the processes involved in an equal pay review – and the benefits it can deliver. To appeal to employers, the TUC is listing the improvements in commitment, morale and productivity that have been shown to follow from fair pay structures and union involvement; they also point out the high cost of recent compensation payouts to victims of pay inequality. The TUC is looking for mandatory pay reviews to address the pay gap and this initiative is a way for employers to address pay inequality in their organisation voluntarily. For further information please call Christine Armitage on 0207-580-5665 or go to www.partnership-institute.org.uk
Back Breaking Work
An online poll conducted by the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) has concluded that most of the workers surveyed remain at their workstation for an average of 97 minutes before taking a break; this is five times longer than recommended by physiotherapists. A total of 23% do not have a break for three hours or more, while 5% remain seated at their workstation for over six hours. In addition, more than two-thirds of the workers surveyed said they have experienced pain in their back, neck or upper limbs as a result of this inactivity. Latest figures show that almost five million working days were lost through back injury in 2003/4 and on average each sufferer had 20 days sick leave in that period. The CSP has issued advice on preventing back injuries in a new leaflet entitled Fit to Work, for further information and to view the leaflet please go to www.csp.org.uk
Workplace Bullying – Mountain or Molehill?
A survey of more than 1,400 HR professionals, in association with anti-bullying charity The Andrea Adams Trust, reveals that levels of bullying are falling in the UK, albeit gradually. Almost 70% of HR professionals have witnessed or have been aware of bullying in their organisation, down from 87% in 2004 and 93% in 1999. Almost half of all respondents (49%) believe incidents of bullying have either fallen or remained the same over the past year.
More than half (59%) said they had specific policies and procedures in place, while more than a third (36%) said bullying was dealt with through recognised grievance procedures. More than half of respondents (55%) said these measures enabled their organisation to satisfactorily resolve bullying incidents. The feedback also indicates that the overwhelming majority (96%) of organisations offer managers training on how to deal with cases of bullying.
However, it is evident from Amicus member’s surveys and evidences from the Andrea Adams Trust that there is still much more to do to eliminate bullying in the workplace. The survey also revealed that bullying takes a variety of forms and is usually perpetrated by the victim’s immediate manager. Humiliation and ridicule, unfair criticism and intimidating behaviour are the most common examples. Nearly two-thirds (62%) have come across incidences of verbal abuse and 5% physical abuse. Three-quarters say there is unwillingness by senior management to acknowledge bullying as a problem, and the management culture is seen as one of the main reasons for firms failing to effectively deal with bullying.
To help in the fight against bullying in the workplace, The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) has launched a new free online learning course to help employers understand and prevent bullying in the workplace. The online course shows employers how to recognise and deal with bullying, as well as harassment, and provides good practice advice on the way to develop clear and accessible policies. The learning package is available at www.acas.org.uk
Fixed Term Contracts – Tribunal Success
An employment tribunal has decided that four government education advisers on fixed term contracts are entitled to the same civil service redundancy payments as their colleagues on permanent contracts. This is one of the first successful claims to be brought under the Fixed Term Employees (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2002. The decision has major implications for thousands of fixed-term employees, and serves as a clear warning that discrimination against fixed-term employees can lead to heavy financial costs. Fixed-term contracts are widely used across all industrial sectors and increasingly, individuals are employed on successive fixed-term contracts without being made permanent. Under regulation 3, fixed-term employees cannot be less favourable treated in their contract terms than comparable permanent employees. Employers should also note that under Regulation 8, employees continuously employed under fixed-term contracts for four years may automatically get permanent employee status from next July. For further information about the ruling please see, x and ors v Secretary of State for Education and Skills (ET Case nos. 2304973-7/04) for further information about fixed term work please see IDS Employment Law Supplement, Fixed Term Work – 2003
Amicus Equal Rights Web Site
The Amicus Equal Rights Web Site has been updated and has all the new revised information regarding employment rights for parents and carers. The site is well worth a visit and should be your first port of call if you have a question or query regarding Equal Rights. For further information on employment rights for parents and carers or general enquiries regarding equal rights please go to www.amicustheunion.org/default.aspx?page=118
This bulletin has been produced by Janet Golds, Research Officer for the Higher Education Sector. If you have any news items you would like included in the e bulletin, please contact Janet Golds.