accused of bullying in workplace

Diziet said:

Unfortunately I have had experience of a real bullying case. Legal remedies are virtually impossible under Irish law. There is unfair/ constructive dismissal legislation, but bullying per se is not illegal. A senior barrister told me that 'employers will rather admit to rape than to bullying' so don't assume that alleging bullying is an easy way for the employee to make a quick buck.

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It's not as black and white as that. The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act, 2005 has a duty on the employer to prevent "inapropriate behaviour" and employees must not engage in "inappropriate behaviour". Given the accepted definition of bullying includes reference to "inappropriate behaviour" there is a clear legislative link to prevent and not be involved in bullying. The HSA's most recent Code on Bullying would further qualify this link.

However, the key aspect is a fair investigation following any complaint, especially one that is formalised in the form of an official letter of complaint. The investigation must be based on one of natural justice as any internal investigation. The accused individual is rightly assumed to be innocent of the complaint until the accuser can satisfy, with evidence, that their complaint is valid on the balance of probabilities.

To that extent if there is no investigation, even though a formal complaint was made, this would be unfair the the individual accused. It is a serious accusation and for the OP may have further consequences in the future if the claim is left on file and they haven't had the opportunity for it to be dismissed.

The HR unit should have a policy and procedure in place regarding the investigation and handling of any bullying complaint. I'd start there and insist that the complaint is investigated (though some policies do include a suspension during this period) if it hasn't, plus also look at the appeals procedure that shoudl also feature in the policy.

I'd agree go into it calmly, but under the context of current standards, it is a serious allegation and the OP deserves to have the complaint looked into because it is potentially a serious slur on their character and capabilities.

Latrade said:

It's not as black and white as that. The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act, 2005 has a duty on the employer to prevent "inapropriate behaviour" and employees must not engage in "inappropriate behaviour". Given the accepted definition of bullying includes reference to "inappropriate behaviour" there is a clear legislative link to prevent and not be involved in bullying. The HSA's most recent Code on Bullying would further qualify this link.
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Agreed - but these are all guidelines. When it comes to court action the legislation (with teeth) is not there, and there are a myriad ways for the employer to wriggle out of it. The bullied employee is always, always the one at a disadvantage, unless the bullying is covered by one of the discrimination grounds. The legal advice is generally to avoid court action.

I agree with your post by the way, and in many ways employment legislation has changed for the better. But the perception, made in other posts, that a disgruntled employee can cry 'bullying' and the employer rolls over and hands over a good payout is not remotely realistic. Hence my advice to the OP to chill a bit if he/she thinks this is the case.

Diziet said:

Agreed - but these are all guidelines. When it comes to court action the legislation (with teeth) is not there, and there are a myriad ways for the employer to wriggle out of it. The bullied employee is always, always the one at a disadvantage, unless the bullying is covered by one of the discrimination grounds. The legal advice is generally to avoid court action.

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I'm not nitpicking here, honestly, but it's a bit more than guidelines. A Code of Practice has more teeth than a guid, plus the legal provisions are relatively clear on what they expect.

However, there was never the intention to have these provisions in place in order to seek prosecution, it's to force employers to develop systems to manage the problem. Largely court action only involves civil cases and I doubt we'll ever see a criminal case.

Though in fairness there is a lot of agreement in what you say. A dad's army "Don't Panic" instruction is worthy, but the OP also has rights and I wouldn't recommend letting the complaint be brushed off (and I have to say if innocent) without a fair investigation.

If I was in the OP's circumstances, I think I'd be seeking clarification on the rationale for awarding an ex-gratia payment rather than tackling the accusation. I'd also seek assurances that the payment was not a tacit acceptance that there was a case against me to answer and that my standing within the compnay would not be affected. I'd look for this in writing.

I accept that the company may have been averse to possible negative publicity but it shows scant consideration and protection for the remaining employees (i.e. the OP).

Staples said:

If I was in the OP's circumstances, I think I'd be seeking clarification on the rationale for awarding an ex-gratia payment rather than tackling the accusation. I'd also seek assurances that the payment was not a tacit acceptance that there was a case against me to answer and that my standing within the compnay would not be affected. I'd look for this in writing.

I accept that the company may have been averse to possible negative publicity but it shows scant consideration and protection for the remaining employees (i.e. the OP).

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It's fair enough to want and to seek such assurances, but no need to get too carried away. And you don't want an HR record entry where otherwise none would have appeared. If no entry on the subject appears on the OP's HR record, then the company can choose to settle in any way they see fit. There may be business reasons to do so and it is, after all, their choice.

If, on the other hand, any of this appears on the OP's HR record then he/she should kick merry hell. But a settlement in itself in not an acceptance of responsibility and if the company has any sense there would be all sorts of disclaimers attached.

Looks like the case will be going to court. the accuser has rejected the offer saying it was too little and asked for a larger payment.
Just to clarify, 2 employees left my team in the past year, and both sent me an email on leaving on how much they enjoyed working for me etc. and 1 has since asked for their position back.

JJAA said:

Looks like the case will be going to court. the accuser has rejected the offer saying it was too little and asked for a larger payment.
Just to clarify, 2 employees left my team in the past year, and both sent me an email on leaving on how much they enjoyed working for me etc. and 1 has since asked for their position back.

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I doubt it will ever reach court (Labour Court? High Court? Rights Commissioner? Which one?). In any case remember that it is your employer who is being taken to court, not you.

A company must investigate any allegation of bullying, failure to do so will make it difficult, if not impossible, to defend a case in at the Rights Commissioner, EAT or a Court of Law depending on where the person making the allegation decides to take his/her case. If the company does not have a Dignity at Work / Bullying & Harassment policy which follows the procedures recommended in the
§ The Health and Safety Authority’s Code of Practice for Employers and Employees on the Prevention and Resolution of Bullying at Work (2007)
§ The Labour Relations Commission’s (LRC) Code of Practice Detailing Procedures for Addressing Bullying in the Workplace
§ Equality Authority’s Code of Practice on Sexual Harassment and Harassment at Work (Statutory Instrument Employment Equality Act 1998 (Code of Practice) (Harassment) Order 2002 (S.I. No. 78 of 2002)
they are likely to lose the case on the basis of lack of procedures.

The absence of procedures combined with the failure to investigate will count strongly against the company. It is worthwhile remembering that the perception of the victim carries more weight than the intent of the alledged perpetrator. As no investigation was carried out it will be impossible to claim that the allegation was malicious. The HR department is in a position to know what policies exist and are making the decision to settle based on this. Loss of a bullying case can have an extremely damaging effect on a company's reputation.