Overview of Workplace Bullying and Harassment

This section focuses on why it is important to address workplace bullying and harassment and how it is defined. Examples of workplace bullying and harassment are also provided.

Why is it important?

As a society, we recognize that every employee has the right to work in a safe, respectful workplace. Bullying and harassment are health and safety issues. In British Columbia, our right to health and safety in the workplace is protected by a law called the Workers Compensation Act. The government gives responsibility to implement the act to WorkSafeBC.

What is workplace bullying and harassment?

WorkSafeBC defines workplace bullying and harassment as “any inappropriate conduct or comment by a person towards a worker that the person knew or reasonably should have known would cause that worker to be humiliated or intimidated.”

Workplace bullying and harassment can happen to anyone, at any workplace. The workplace can be large or small, unionized or non-unionized. The workplace can be in the public sector, the private sector or the not-for-profit sector.

The bully may be one individual, or there may be a group of bullies. The target of the workplace bullying and harassment may be one person or a group.

What is not considered workplace bullying or harassment?

It is not workplace bullying or harassment when an employer or supervisor:

• expresses differences of opinion
• offers constructive feedback or advice about work-related behaviour
• takes reasonable action to manage a worker’s performance or to assign work
• takes reasonable disciplinary action.

Examples of workplace bullying and harassment

These examples show some of the ways that bullying and harassment can happen in the workplace. They do not mention all forms of bullying and harassment.

If someone is bullying and or harassing you, they might use one or more of these behaviours:

• yells at you, insults you, or use other ways to make you afraid
• spreads negative and untrue gossip about you
• makes jokes that are offensive
• refuses to speak to you
• criticizes you constantly
• makes you do something humiliating
• withholds necessary information or deliberately gives you the wrong information
• interferes with your personal belongings or work equipment
• prevents you from doing your work properly
• gives you deadlines that are impossible to meet.

The bully may use these behaviours in person, by phone or online. When it happens online, it is called cyber-bullying.

This information applies to British Columbia, Canada. Last reviewed for legal accuracy by People's Law School, 2014.

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