OHS REPS @ WORK

For more information, advice, draft policies and so on, go to these websites:

• Being Bossed Around is Bad For Your Health - the ACTU Bullying Campaign site. This campaign is on-going with the participation of unions and Trades and Labour Councils around Australia. Read about the campaign messages, results of a large survey and some true stories on bullying. New Fact sheet: Workplace Bullying [pdf]
  
  
• From UnionsNSW:  a very short survey, mainly to ascertain the extent of bullying in workplaces 
  
  
• The UK's peak union council, the TUC has produced guidance for safety representatives on dealing with Bullying at Work. It includes a sample survey form.  Bullying at Work - Guidance for Safety Representatives
  
  
• From WorkSafe Victoria - the Bullying and Occupational Violence topic page:
  • Guidance Note: Prevention of Bullying and Violence at Work and related information
  • Cash in Transit  - a 32 page publication outlining practical guidance for Cash In Transit (CIT) employers, and duties of designers, managers, contractors and employees. The publication covers risk management, safety and security risk assessment, vehicles and robbery.  Another, related publication is Armed hold-ups and cash handling - Transferring cash - providing a solution for small businesses being targeted for robberies when transferring cash to the bank.
    
  • Occupational violence in the health industry -  a page with links to a number of documents specific to the health industy
  • And the final report of the Victorian Taskforce on Violence in Nursing [pdf], published by the Nurse Policy Branch, Victorian Department of Human Services. The taskforce, which consisted of representatives from all the relevant stakeholders, including unions, considered a number of themes including organisational culture, violence and aggression, education, bullying and reporting tools, and made a number of recommendations.
  • Prevention and management of aggression in health services - A handbook for workplaces This handbook provides a framework to identify, prevent and manage aggression and violence in health industry workplaces.
    
    
     
• From NSW WorkCover: Preventing and dealing with Workplace Bullying - A guide for employers and employees [pdf] Similar to the Victorian guide, but updated and more useful in the workplace - this guide provides assistance to employers and employees on the prevention and dealing with bullying.
  
  
• From WorkSafe in Western Australia:
  •  an information page on bullying and violence with articles covering a large number of industries.
  • A Guidance Note:   Dealing with bullying in the workplace: a guide for workers [pdf] This publication is also available in other languages.
    
  • Code of practice: Violence, aggression and bullying at work (2006) [pdf].  The code has practical advice for employers on what to do and includes worked examples, checklists and more.
    
    
• From South Australia:
  • Stop Bullying in South Australia  - A Collaborative Effort of the Interagency Roundtable on Workplace Bullying.  This site has information for employees and employers as well as resources, links and much more.
  • SA WorkCover has a webpage on bullying, and another page with more documents providing advice to workers and employers. There is also a page on Violence, with useful documents.
    
  • A new guide for employers and employees Preventing and Dealing with Workplace Bullying
  • A very comprehensive guide from the South Australian Working Womens' Centre and SA WorkCover, Workplace Bullying - Making a difference [ pdf].  This guide includes a 'Workplace Climate Survey' that reps can amend to suit them.  
    
    
• From Queensland: Advice on workplace harassment, including the Prevention of Workplace Harassment Advisory Standard 2004
  
  
• From WorkCover NSW:
  • Preventing and dealing with workplace bullying - Guide  and Brochure
  • Dealing and preventing with workplace bullying - Fact sheet  
  • a Code of Practice: Cash in Transit [pdf]
  • a guide: Violence in the Workplace  [pdf] 
  • advice for employers on prevention Workplace violence: prevention strategies for your business [pdf]
  • an industry specific guide: Robbery and Violence in the Retail Industry [pdf] and Factsheets: Managing the risk of robbery and violence in supermarkets and departments stores [pdf] and Managing the risk of robbery and violence in convenience stores and newsagents
  • Workplace violence in the finance sector [pdf] - a 38 page booklet
  • Prevention and management of workplace aggression: guidelines and case studies from NSW Health Industry [pdf]
  • A fact sheet: Managing the risk of violence at work [pdf]
    
    
• From WorkCover Tasmania:
  • Stress, Bullying, Alcohol and other Drug Misuse. Hidden Hazards: A guide for employers  Explains what hidden hazards are, the legal obligations that everyone has to make workplaces healthy and safe and to manage hidden hazards, using the four SAFE steps of risk management.
  • Stress, Bullying, Alcohol and other Drug Misuse. Hidden Hazards: A guide for workers   Explains what hidden hazards are and will help you, the worker, recognise their signs and understand the risks they can pose to your health and safety in the workplace.
    
    
• From Comcare:
  • Applying best practice principles to the prevention and management of customer aggression  - a risk management guide for customer service providers a joint Centrelink and Comcare publication.
  • Reception Customer Aggression - a simple table with advice from the Virtual Office section of the site
    
  • A guide Bullying in the Workplace: a guide to prevention for managers and supervisors - provides information on what bullying is; managers' responsibilities; how to take a proactive approach to prevent bullying; and a checklist of actions for senior management.
    

• Monash University has launched a website:  Trauma Assist Online for people suffering with Post-Traumatic stress Disorder (PTSD) which provides information about traumatic events, responses to trauma, self-care following exposure to trauma, and treatment of the disorder.
  

• Dealing with Bullying - An Australian website that looks at bullying at work and at school.
  
  
• The ILO webpage Violence and Stress at Work has a long list of relevant international websites, as well as information and advice that is sector specific.  The SafeWork site of the ILO also has a page specifically on Violence
  
  
• The UK union UNISON has produced very useful guidelines for union delegates and OHS reps: Bullying at Work [ pdf]  The guidelines give advice on the sorts of things that can be done to combat bullying in the workplace.  The guidelines contain a draft policy and also workplace survey.
  
  
• Violence in retail and licensed premises toolkit From the UK's HSE, this free web-based kit is designed to help employers in retail and licensed premises tackle the problem of work-related violence. While primarily aimed at large employers in the sector, an accompanying summary leaflet is be available for smaller organisations. The toolkit incorporates a wide number of examples of good practice and control measures used to reduce the risk of violence in the retail and licensed sectors. (available after October 1, 2008)
  
  
• The Andrea Adams Trust website, the main charity dealing with tackling bullying at work in the UK. 
  
  
• Bullying at work: a review of the literature [PDF 311kb]  A report that reviews the literature on workplace bullying, discussing definitions, methods of investigating, behaviours constituting bullying and the literature on effective interventions.
  
  

• Europe's unions and employer organisations have signed a framework agreement to fight against harassment and violence at work. Negotiated over ten months, the text commits  a number of the signatories to combat by April 2010 all unacceptable behaviour that can lead to harassment and violence at the workplace.
  ETUC news release. Framework agreement on harassment and violence at work [pdf].