Fact File 
Peninsula Ireland Survey
2008 - Seven in ten affected by workplace rage.
A
survey has been carried out by Peninsula Ireland of 1,149
workers in February 2008. The law firm found that the Irish
workplace is getting more "hot tempered" with a majority
of workers experiencing regular verbal abuse.
The survey found that this work rage was affecting seven
out of every ten employees with similar numbers reporting
regular shouting at work.
The law firm survey also found that 74 per cent of Irish
workers admitted to having lost their temper whilst
at work. Nine out of every ten affected by rage blamed
it on co-workers who were not "pulling their weight".
Some of the 68 per cent of people surveyed said that
verbal and yelling abuse was common at their work place.
Alan
Price of Peninsula Ireland said: "You get situations in
Ireland where employees fear coming into work. It is time
to expose workplace bullying for what it really is, a form
of harassment and in no way should it be tolerated. "Bullying
in the workplace can take on many forms and it’s not just
from colleagues as it seems many workers are harassed by
management. "We urge employers to have a system in place
where workers are encouraged to speak to someone if they
feel bullied and where their complaint is taken seriously
and acted upon."
Mr
Price went onto say "When talking to employees it is apparent
that those that are bullied by management or their employer
are reluctant to work as hard as those that are not bullied.
"Silent bullying presents a major problem, where someone
feels isolated when left out of group discussions and decisions.
"Employees and employers need to remember that harassment
is in the eye of the recipient and the question employers
need to ask is whether the situation could be considered
severe enough for the employee to take legal action."
Mental Health Ireland said it would be concerned for
the well being of workers who are continually on the
receiving end of co-workers and boses who loose their
tempers.
The Chief Executive of Mental Health Ireland, Brian Howard
said "If this is a new phenomenon it would certainly be
a cause of concern for us." commenting on the fact that
68 per cent of respondents to the survey saying that yelling
and verbal abuse at work was common, Mr Howard said " If
it is representative of the entire country there is something
pretty wrong there that needs to be addressed. There would
be a concern for the well being of individuals if seven
out of ten people regularly experience shouting and yelling
in the workplace."
Mental Health Ireland had surveys in 2003 and 2005 that
showed work places were generally becoming more stressful,
but had not explored any pattern of roaring and yelling
abuse.
Mr Howard went on to say " If someone loses their temper
once in a blue moon, well I think everybody would put their
hand up to that, when they encounter extreme stressful situations
and if they are working very long hours. But to loose one's
temper on a regular basis, i.e. daily or weekly, if seven
out of ten people are experiencing that it would be a bit
of a shock to us".
Brian Howard has advised workers to take action when
stress in the workplace was taking its toll. He concluded
by saying " There's greater stress on the workforce,
but our findings suggest most people can cope with the
growth of stress, but with a significant minority around
the 20 to 25 per cent mark, it does affect their life
styles and the quality of their work.Our advice is recognise
that stress is a modern day phenomenon and to recognise
the causes of it and take action where necessary."
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