Establishing Whether Bullying And Harassment Has Taken Place At Work

Unfortunately, both bullying and harassment are more common in the workplace than people assume and many employees experienced unwelcome behaviour that is insulting, offensive, malicious and intimidating in nature. Thankfully, if you are experiencing this type of behaviour in the workplace, then you are entitled to take action and it is likely that you will be protected by The Equality Act 2010 (The EA). 

However, it can be very difficult to establish whether bullying and harassment have actually taken place, and there are circumstances where the behaviour in question actually amounts to something less serious. For this reason, every bullying and harassment case is considered on an individual basis and the circumstances of a situation will have a significant impact on a bullying and harassment claim. 

To help anyone who is trying to establish whether they have experienced bullying and harassment, and whether they are able to make a claim to the Employment Tribunal, below we have explored this specific type of claim in more detail. 

The basics 

It is important to note from the outset that a complaint of bullying cannot be brought before an Employment Tribunal, however, bullying can sometimes also be harassment and The EA provides protection against harassment. Should the behaviour you experience no fall under The EA coverage, you may be able to pursue a County Court claim instead. 

Should you be able to take a claim to the Employment Tribunal, this claim must be made within three months less one day of the date of the behaviour experienced. County Court claims are more complicated and you are best to seek some tailored legal advice if you are interested in going down this route, yet you often have longer to make your claim. 

When is bullying also considered to be harassment?

Under The Equality Act 2010, harassment has a very specific meaning and this can be found in Section 26 of the act. 

Simply put, a person harasses another if they engage in unwanted conduct related to a relevant protected characteristic and the conduct has the purpose or effect of violating their dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment. When deciding whether the conduct experienced actually has this effect, there are different things that will be taken into consideration, such as; whether it is reasonable for the conduct to have that effect. 

The characteristics that are protected against in relation to harassment at work include; 

• Age
• Disability
• Gender reassignment
• Race
• Religion or belief
• Sex
• Sexual orientation

It is worth noting that harassment can also occur as a result of conduct that is motivated by the belief that a person has a protected characteristic or because someone they know has a protected characteristic. 

Who can harass a person in the workplace?

You can experience unwanted conduct at work from; 

• A senior colleague 
• A colleague of the same level 
• A more junior colleague
• A group of colleagues 

Bullying that is also harassment can take many forms and this is what makes this particular area of employment law so complex. Sometimes, the colleagues mentioned above may think their behaviour is just friendly banter, but it is actually harassment and vice versa, you may think you are being harassed, but the behaviour does not meet the definition of harassment in The EA. 

Speaking to an employment law specialist about bullying and harassment at work 

Hopefully, if you are in a situation where you are trying to establish whether you have experienced bullying and harassment at work, the information above will be beneficial. However, if you are still unsure as to where you stand in relation to The Equality Act 2010 and you are interested in getting a professional opinion in this regard, please do not hesitate to contact our team here at Nationwide Employment Lawyers today. 

Our team of experienced employment law specialists will gladly assist you further in this regard and they will be able to answer any questions that you may have relating to bullying and harassment. We understand just how confusing employment law can be, but we will help to simplify things for you and provide you with any additional information that you may require. We can use our extensive experience, knowledge of the law and sound judgement to provide you with the sensible advice you need, and we pride ourselves on being honest and to the point with our clients to prevent confusion and unnecessarily high legal fees.