Bullying and Harassment
Although there is no legal definition of bullying, it can be described as unwanted behaviour from a person or group that is either:
- offensive, intimidating, malicious or insulting
- an abuse or misuse of power that undermines, humiliates, or causes physical or emotional harm to someone.
Bullying might:
- be a course of conduct and regular pattern of behaviour or a one-off incident
- happen face-to-face, on social media, in emails or calls
- happen at work or in other work-related situations
- not always be obvious or noticed by others
It is possible someone might not know their behaviour is bullying. It can still be bullying even if they do not realise it or do not intend to bully someone.
When bullying might be harassment:
Under the Equality Act 2010, bullying behaviour can be harassment if it relates to any of the following 'protected characteristics': age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.
*This submission is confidential, however cannot be submitted anonymously. The reason taken is to allow fairness to all persons involved. Following your submission and before any other action, People Services will meet with you to discuss the event(s) in more detail and to discuss the next steps.