Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-11-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to tackle workplace bullying.

Justin Tomlinson

DWP takes any suggestions of workplace bullying in any form very seriously.

All employees are required to report instances of bullying and seek support through our internal HR Support teams. In the first instance they are directed to our dedicated HR Mediation and Investigation Service. These trained professionals are able to assist managers and employees in resolving workplace disputes including complaints of Harassment, Discrimination and Bullying.

Immediate telephone support for individuals is available through our Employee Assistance Programme. Employees contacting the service because of bullying receive extra support and counselling. This service is accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

Where problems have been identified we have also been able to arrange specific Bullying and Harassment awareness sessions aimed directly at managers, with positive results.

During this year’s anti bullying week all employees were reminded of the support and guidance available.