Light shined on New Zealand’s woeful workplace bullying

The New Zealand Government hasn’t listened to or acted on concerns that there is no access to justice for the victims of workplace bullying, says CultureSafe NZ.

And now the workplace bullying watchdog is set to raise the matter on the international stage.

CultureSafe NZ director Allan Halse will be a guest speaker at a conference held by ACAS – Britain’s leading impartial authority on workplace relations and effectiveness – in Birmingham on March 13.

The conference will highlight key trends and challenges for HR in 2019 and beyond.

“New Zealand’s abysmal record as being the second worst in the developed world for workplace bullying will be the topic of my speech,” Halse said.

“New Zealand must begin to seriously address the insidious workplace bullying issue that is rife in our country.

“I believe the Government has failed to address the issue and has failed to enforce the provisions of the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015, thus preventing the victims of workplace bullying from getting access to justice.”

It’s for that reason that Halse, in collaboration with a Palmerston North-based health and safety representative, have made a submission to the Universal Periodic Review Working Group of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland.

“Sadly, we learnt about the review too late to have our submission heard but I intend to continue to raise the Government’s failure – now on the international stage – until New Zealand is prepared to protect its workers who have lost access to their human rights through being abused in their workplaces without access to justice,” Halse said.

CultureSafe, which launched five years ago, currently has more than 100 clients across New Zealand that it is working with at any given time. Approximately 60 per cent of those clients have been diagnosed with mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety and/or post-traumatic stress disorder and many have considered or have attempted suicide.

“Many cases have attracted national media attention and more will because the Employment Relations Authority is unable to deal with workplace bullying using the correct legislation – the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.

“Although I haven’t yet achieved my goal of preventing or eliminating workplace bullying in New Zealand, there is no doubt that with the help of my small team, we have certainly created a high level of awareness in the political and public arena.

“And we won’t stop lobbying the Government until we see real change.”

© Scoop Media