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Beware
bullies in your employ
Bullying
in the workplace hit the headlines earlier
this month when Helen Green was awarded
£817,000 in damages. The judge described
the way that four colleagues at Deutsche
Bank Group Services treated her as a ‘deliberate
and concerted campaign of bullying’.
Bullying
claims have become much easier to win thanks
to a recent House of Lords ruling which
deemed that employers were liable for such
claims even if senior managers were unaware
of the problem. In the past people had to
demonstrate that their employers were aware
that they were being bullied and that this
had resulted in a recognised psychiatric
illness. In July five law Lords paved the
way for change when they ruled that employers
were liable to pay damages for the harassment
of one worker by another provided that the
bullying was closely connected with the
duties of the job.
Although
Helen Green won her case on the basis of
stress at work she also succeeded in the
additional argument that bullying amounted
to harassment under the Protection from
Harassment Act 1997.
Jo
Crofts, our Director of Psychological &
Crisis Management Services believes that:
“while many companies have policies in place
designed to protect employees from bullying,
this may not protect them in a court of
law given this latest ruling. Using an external
EAP which offers confidential support to
employees by phone or email is one way in
which employers can start to solve potential
problems. However companies need to ensure
that they develop a culture which frowns
upon bullying. Here at docleaf we offer
a range of training courses to help identify
workplace bullying and put strategies in
place to manage such behaviours.”
Please
contct Jo Crofts - jo.crofts@docleaf.com
for further information.
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Dissability
access database for the travel industry
Before
embarking on a journey, the disabled traveler
typically requires information on the accessibility
of a venue. This can give them a wider choice
of places to go and enable them to prepare
adequately for the obstacles that may be
present when they arrive.
At
this time there is a lack of such an information
resource within the travel industry. By
utilising the technology that Travelsafe
(www.travelsafe.biz)
has developed, we are beginning to develop
a database of accessibility for holiday
destinations across the globe. This will
provide a valuable resource for travel arrangers,
who are frequently asked about accessibility
by travellers, and will also allow accessible
hotels to promote their status to potential
buyers and guests.
We
are developing the structure for this exciting
new service over the coming months and are
keen to hear your comments on how you feel
such a service would benefit you and your
customers:
-
What do your disabled customers see as
the biggest challenges to arranging a
holiday?
- How
do you currently address these concerns?
We would love to hear from you!
Please email andy.jarosz@travelsafe.biz
with your suggestions.
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Managing
Sickness Absence
A recent survey by the CBI claims that 13%
of sick days are not genuine and that covering
this by paying overtime and providing temporary
support costs on average £531 per
employee. The total of these lost days costs
the economy £13bn.
docleaf’s
EAP services include Managing Absence Stragies.
These can be highly effective in reducing
absence rates. Recently Lewisham NHS Trust
were able to cut their absence rates by
37% in just over three months by introducing
a reporting system. Pickfords were able
to reduce theirs by 30% by introducing an
effective policy.
For
details on how you can improve your absence
rates contact Jo Crofts on 01923 681224
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