What is violence and harassment in the world of work

What is violence and harassment in the world of work

1. Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 1

2. What is violence and harassment in the world of work Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 2 … a range of unacceptable behaviours, practices or threats thereof, whether a single occurrence or repeated, that aim at, result in, or are likely to result in physical, psychological, sexual or economic harm Convention No. 190, Art. 1(a)

3. Types of workplace violence and harassment Physical violence Physical attacks, beating, kicking, slapping, stabbing, shooting, pushing, biting, etc. Psychological violence and harassment Verbal abuse, mobbing, bullying and cyberbullying Manipulating a person’s reputation, isolating a person, withholding information, slandering and ridiculing, giving impossible goals, etc. Sexual violence and harassment Quid pro quo Hostile working environment Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 3

4. The dynamics of workplace violence and harassment Horizontal, perpetrated between co-workers Vertical, perpetrated between supervisors and subordinates Third party, perpetrated by clients/customers/patients 4

5. Psychosocial factors associated with workplace violence and harassment Job demands – assignments not matched to the knowledge and abilities Job control – little or no say in how to perform the job Task design – repetitive or monotonous work Role clarity – work responsibilities, duties and authority are unclear Workplace relationships – criticism; exclusion; lack of support and communication Leadership styles – autocratic or laissez-faire leadership Organizational justice – lack of policies and procedures; unfairness in decision-making Organizational change – management restructuring/downsizing; outsourcing Physical working environment – design and maintenance of work equipment and facilities Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 5

6. Other risk factors Discrimination Cultural and language differences ‘Normalization’ of violence and harassment Workplace cultures in which bullying behaviours are not challenged Workplace cultures that tolerate alcohol or drug abuse Groups of workers more vulnerable to violence and harassment (e.g. women, young workers, informal workers, etc.) Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 6

7. Working situations which may increase the risk of violence and harassment at work Working alone Working in contact with the public Working with people in distress Working with valuables and cash handling Work in isolated or remote locations, at evening and/or night Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 7

8. What is the impact Victims . Mental health problems (fear, sadness, shame, anxiety, depression, chronic fatigue, sleep problems, PTSD, increased suicide risk, etc.); physical disorders (decreased physical strength, musculoskeletal disorders, cardiovascular disease); reduced self-esteem; damages to work situation. Witnesses, colleagues, patients and clients, family members and friends . Detrimental effects on mental health and well-being. Organizations . Costs associated to absenteeism; staff turnover; recruitment, onboarding and training; low performance and productivity; damaged reputation; increased insurance premiums; etc. Society . Costs related to medical consultations, treatment and/or rehabilitation; social welfare/benefits; etc. Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 8

9. ILO Violence and Harassment Convention (No. 190) and Recommendation (No. 206) Respect, promote and realize the right of everyone to a world of work free from violence and harassment Adopt an inclusive, integrated and gender-responsive approach Complementary roles and functions of governments, employers and workers Protection in all sectors, private and public, formal and informal economy, urban or rural areas Adopting laws and regulations to prohibit violence and harassment and define employers’ responsibilities Addressing violence and harassment in relevant national policies (e.g., concerning OSH, equality and non-discrimination, migration) Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 9

10. ILO OSH Conventions and Recommendation Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155), Recommendation (No, 164) and Protocol of 2002 (No. 155) Occupational Health Services Convention, 1985 (No. 161) and Recommendation (No. 171) List of Occupational Diseases Recommendation, 2002 (No. 194) Promotional Framework for Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 2006 (No. 187) and Recommendation (No. 197) Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 10 Protection of physical and mental health of workers

11. Integrating workplace violence and harassment into national OSH frameworks Provisions and measures to prevent and address violence and harassment National OSH frameworks: OSH laws and regulations Labour inspection OSH policies, strategies and programmes OSH guidelines and standards Data collection on OSH OSH education, training and awareness raising Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 11

12. National OSH laws and regulations Employers’ general duty to protect the physical and mental health of workers Requirements for the adoption of OSH preventive measures (policy; risk assessment; protocols & procedures; training; etc.) Complaint mechanisms Protection from retaliation and reprisals Sanctions, remedies and compensations Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 12

13. Examples: National OSH-related laws addressing workplace violence and harassment (I) Belgium: Act on the well-being of workers Employers’ duty to conduct a risk assessment and adopt preventive measures Formal/ informal psychosocial intervention for victims Appointment of a prevention advisor (internal/external service) Workers’ duty to cooperate with the employer Sweden : Violence and Menaces in the Working Environment Ordinance Employers’ duty to investigate the risks of violence or threat of violence and take appropriate measures Recording and investigation of cases of violence Assistance and support to the victims for the prevention or alleviation of both physical and mental injury Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 13

14. Examples: National OSH-related laws addressing workplace violence and harassment (II) Canada: Occupational Health and Safety Regulations Workplace violence prevention policy, with employers’ obligations: provide a safe, healthy and violence-free workplace address factors that contribute to workplace violence communicate information about such factors assist employees who have been exposed to workplace violence Colombia: Law on sexual and other forms of harassment within the framework of labour relations Preventive and corrective measures Internal, confidential, conciliatory and effective procedure to deal with cases of harassment Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 14

15. Labour inspection Member States should ensure effective means of inspection and investigation of cases of violence and harassment, including through labour inspectorates or other competent bodies Convention No. 190, Art. 4.2 Labour inspectors should receive gender-responsive training with a view to identifying and addressing violence and harassment in the world of work, including psychosocial hazards and risks, gender-based violence and harassment, and discrimination against particular groups of workers cover violence and harassment in the world of work as part of their mandate Recommendation No. 206, Para. 20 and 21 Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 15

16. National OSH policies, strategies, guidelines and standards Government in consultation with Social Partners National OSH policies and strategies Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 16 Guidelines Codes of practice Standards Protocols On-line resources Ministry of Labour; Labour inspectorate; OSH authorities; Social partners; etc. Sectoral approach

17. Data collection on workplace violence and harassment Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 17 Member States should make efforts to collect and publish statistics on violence and harassment in the world of work disaggregated by sex, form of violence and harassment, and sector of economic activity Recommendation No. 206, Para. 22 Direct measuring. E.g. formal complaints; specific questionnaires on violence and harassment; measuring items in existing periodic labour/working conditions surveys; trade union members’ surveys; etc. Indirect measuring. E.g. absenteeism and sick (personal) leave; staff turnover; exit interviews; workers’ compensation claims

18. Example: French survey on working conditions (2013) 1. Workers had been: ignored as if they were not present prohibited from expressing themselves ridiculed in public criticised in an unjustified way for their work subject to sabotage or hindrance so that their tasks could not be carried out correctly subject to obscene or condescending remarks given useless or condescending tasks told that they are mentally incapable subject to insistent sexual propositions the butt of offensive or crude jokes or mockery Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 18 2. Source of aggression: co-workers, supervisors, managers clients, users or patients workers from another enterprise others

19. OSH education, training and awareness raising Members should fund, develop, implement and disseminate gender-responsive curricula and instructional materials on violence and harassment at all levels of education and vocational training , in line with national law and circumstances public campaigns aimed at fostering safe, healthy and harmonious workplaces free from violence and harassment Recommendation No. 206, Para. 23 Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 19

20. Action at the workplace level Adopt and implement, in consultation with workers and their representatives, a workplace policy on violence and harassment Take into account violence and harassment and associated psychosocial risks in the management of occupational safety and health Identify hazards and assess the risks of violence and harassment, with the participation of workers and their representatives, and take measures to prevent and control them Provide to workers and other persons concerned information and training , in accessible formats as appropriate, on the identified hazards and risks of violence and harassment and the associated prevention and protection measures, including on the rights and responsibilities of workers and other persons concerned in relation to the policy Convention No. 190, Art. 9 Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 20

21. Workplace policy on violence and harassment (I) State that violence and harassment will not be tolerated Establish violence and harassment prevention programmes with, if appropriate, measurable objectives Specify the rights and responsibilities of the workers and the employer Contain information on complaint and investigation procedures Provide that all internal and external communications related to incidents of violence and harassment will be duly considered, and acted upon as appropriate Specify the right to privacy of individuals and confidentiality, (…), while balancing the right of workers to be made aware of all hazards Include measures to protect complainants, victims, witnesses and whistle-blowers against victimization or retaliation Recommendation No. 206, Para. 7 Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 21

22. Workplace policy on violence and harassment (II) Integrated into broader workplace OSH policy Developed in consultation with workers (e.g. Joint OSH Committee) Properly communicated and easily accessible to all workers Consistently applied Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 22

23. Hazard identification & risk assessment In particular, pay attention to hazards and risks that arise from working conditions and arrangements, work organization and human resource management involve third parties (e.g. clients, customers, service providers, users, patients & members of the public) arise from discrimination, abuse of power relations, and gender, cultural and social norms that support violence and harassment Recommendation No. 206, Para. 8 Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 23

24. Example: the Canadian standard on psychological health and safety in the workplace Critical events: Identification → Assessment of risks and impact → Management Factors to be assessed: Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 24 psychological support organizational culture clear leadership and expectations civility and respect psychological job demands growth and development recognition and reward involvement and influence workload management engagement work/life balance psychological protection from violence, bullying, and harassment protection of physical safety other chronic stressors as identified by workers

25. Measures for prevention and control Physical violence Locks and alarms; Emergency procedures; Training and support mechanisms Psychological violence and harassment Encouraging teamwork and cooperation; Providing appropriate resources, information and training to execute the job effectively and safely; Clearly defining individual job requirements and responsibilities; Ensuring transparent communication Sexual violence and harassment Integration of prevention activities into daily procedures (e.g. checking lighting, locks and security cameras); Instructions on how to effectively defuse hostile situations involving clients/patients/customers/general public Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 25

26. Measures for responding and minimize the effects Ensure workers’ right to remove themselves from a work situation which presents an imminent and serious danger to life, health or safety Develop and implement reporting and complaints procedures and dispute resolution mechanism → protecting the privacy and confidentiality of those involved Provide support to victims Foresee and apply disciplinary actions (e.g. sanctions) Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 26

27. OSH training and information Concept of workplace violence and harassment Responsibilities in preventing and responding to violence and harassment Procedures for reporting and complaints Tailored to the needs of the target audience (workers; workers’ OSH reps; members of joint OSH committees; supervisors; managers; etc.) Training to all new and prospective workers before   they enter the organization Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 27

28. Example: PAS 1010:2011 – Management of psychosocial risks in the workplace Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 28 Level Primary intervention Secondary interventions Tertiary interventions Organization Policies & procedures Organizational culture Management training Surveys Handling & investigation procedures Rehabilitation & return to work Workplace / Group Risk assessments Awareness training Training on conflict management / impact Conflict resolution Group support Individual Assertiveness training Information about how to proceed if harassment Social support and counselling Therapy Redress

29. What can be done to end violence and harassment in the world of work? (I) Governments . National OSH policies, strategies and laws; initiatives and measures; ratify Convention No. 190 Social partners . Collective agreements; guidance to their members; collect data Labour inspectorates . Investigate any complaints; advise employers and workers Employers . Ensure safe and healthy working environments; workplace OSH management system; workplace OSH policy and programme; risk assessment; information and training Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 29

30. What can be done to end violence and harassment in the world of work? (II ) Workers . Co-operate in the implementation of the OSH management system Workers’ OSH representatives . Increase awareness; conduct surveys; encourage and support reporting and complaint; consult with employers on OSH measures and training Joint OSH committees . Ensure cooperation between workers and employers OSH practitioners . Advise and support employers, managers, workers and OSH representatives; facilitate engagement and influence positive change Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 30

31. Date: Monday / 01 / October / 2019 31 Thank you For more information: Manal Azzi (Senior OSH specialist) [email protected] LABADNIN/OSH Branch [email protected]