Over 90% of employees at least erstwhile in their careers experienced behaviour that could be considered mobbing, according to the study "Mobbing in the working environment". Most people do not study specified cases anywhere due to the fact that they do not trust that they will receive real help. The Labour Code does not adequately defend from this phenomenon – the provision imposing an work on employers to counter it is laconic and does not indicate how it is to be implemented. Also, the work inspection has no tools to effectively fight mobbing. The problem is besides that this concept can be abused and utilized in the fight against the employer.
– The definition of mobbing in the Labour Code is unfortunately very complicated. It contains many vague concepts that clarified the case law. In order to get your claims before the court, it must be demonstrated that all the conditions which the article mentions in the Labour Code have been met, and that makes the substance very hard – evaluates in conversation with Newseria Marcin Stanecki, Chief Labour Inspector.
Last year's study "Mobbing in the Work Environment", prepared by Antal and the Good Foundation under the patronage of the Employers of Poland, shows that 93 percent of employees experienced at least erstwhile behaviour that could be considered mobbing. In turn, a study published in June this year entitled “Work in Human Work” (based on the responses of over a 1000 respondents, 80 percent of whom were women) states that over 66% of people have experienced long-term and persistent harassment or intimidation in their professional life, which led to lower professional self-esteem, humiliation, ridicule, isolation or elimination from the team. The experience of mobbing has been reported by only 31 percent of those experiencing it, and only a small over 18 percent of them declare that they have received real help.
– The position of the individual who is injured by the mobber is very difficult. The mobbing side is very frequently mediate staff: managers, managers who bring fantastic results to the company. The price for this is what happens to employees under the manager, who, speaking common language, suck them to almost the last drop of blood. It's hard for a company to get free of a individual who brings super results erstwhile they get together with an worker who can't handle the pressure, the pace of work, the pressure, and so he gets a wellness disorder, he falls victim to the mobbing of having to work besides hard. – comments Marcin Stanecki.
As regards the work to combat mobbing, the Labour Code is vague. The evidence on this subject is limited to only 1 sentence: "Employer is obliged to counteract mobbing". However, there are no indications as to how this work is to be fulfilled. any companies take this issue seriously and prepare procedures, trust phones for their employees. The results of the survey “Work in Human Work” show that anti-mobbing policy occurs in just over 43 percent of organisations. Almost all 4th responsive does not know whether specified a policy exists in the company that employs him. Anti-mobbing training is only available in just over 26 percent of companies.
Moreover, it turns out that the State Labour Inspectorate itself besides has tied hands in the fight against mobbing.
– We don't have powers, a decision like that. Mobbing is neither an offence nor a crime. We can only direct soft measures: a speech, a command that is characterized by us turning and not ordering. This means that a controlled entity can completely minimize specified a request and this is unfortunately lege artis. You can assert your rights before the court, but remember that in Poland all 20th case ends positively for the worker and frequently takes a very long time. On average, damages are several, a twelve 1000 zlotys. And 1 more crucial thing: virtually all individual who has suffered mobbing and is present in court must undergo rehabilitation again and heal again. frequently the money he wins won't even be enough. – adds Chief Labour Inspector.
The mobbing phenomenon has serious effects on intellectual health, but more than 70% of respondents have besides reported physical symptoms very frequently or frequently. Long-term stress results in increased cortisol and muscle tension, as well as cardiovascular disorders. More than 62% of respondents experienced changes in appetite – mobbing can consequence in irregular eating, weight failure or, on the contrary, compulsive eating and weight gain. Over 56% reported common or very common symptoms specified as hypertension, chest pain or headache. Long-term stress increases the hazard of heart attack or arrhythmia.
As the Chief Labour Inspector points out, the impreciseness of the mobbing records makes this concept abuse.
– I had a situation where 1 of the large companies could come to work with a dog. It was expected to be a pro-working solution, but it turned out that unfortunately not all employees liked it due to the fact that individual was allergic, individual got scared. The president so decided that as of 1 January there would be a ban on coming to work with dogs. It turned out that there was a complaint about mobbing from people who had come to work with a dog so far. Of course, this is not a mobbing phenomenon. Another classical example of abuse of this word is the command to work overtime, which is besides not a mobbing – says Marcin Stanecki. – Today, mobbing is frequently abused, especially by people who lose their jobs. This is due to our complaints. The complaint individual describes a number of irregularities in the establishment, which actually occur, specified as the problem of paying wages, the payment of overtime pay, the breach of the working time regulations, which he very meticulously prescribes and at the end adds mobbing. And it is hard for the inspector to mention to specified laconic information and very frequently it is expected to be a strong hit by the worker in the employer.
The Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy is working on clarifying the rules on mobbing. In the draft ministry, it proposes simplifying the definition of mobbing and excluding from it, among others, incidents and one-off behaviour and independent of the intention of the perpetrator. The law is besides intended to introduce an work to lay down rules on the prevention of harassment and discrimination in the labour regulations or in the notice. At the same time, it is besides intended to defend employers and others from false accusations.
For: newseria.pl
