VIDEO - Bullying at Work - Your Stories from Lifetrack

Lifetracks aims to be the first place all young people in the UK turn to when they're making decisions about their work, study or training.

Lifetracks has produced two video's on Bullying and Harassment in the Workplace.

BULLYING AT WORK

It's not always easy to know if you are being bullied. After all, it can be really difficult to get on with absolutely everyone you work with. You may have colleagues who are bossy or demanding. Supervisors might get angry if you don't meet targets or the necessary standards. However, if the criticism is constant or if it focuses more on you as a person than the work you do, then it may have crossed the line into bullying.

Think, too, about how your workmate's actions are making you feel. Are you being physically injured or emotionally hurt? Are you continually being made to feel stupid or incompetent? Do you get put down, no matter how good a job you do? If so, it could be that you're being targeted by a workplace bully.

You don't have to put up with bullying at work. Sometimes you may be able to talk to the person and ask them to stop especially if they're not aware of how they're making you feel. However, if you're not comfortable with confronting the bully, or you find that talking doesn't make any difference, see 'What next?' for other actions you can take.


RESOLVING BULLYING AT WORK

Stephen Williams from Acas, explains that receiving criticism from a boss or colleague at work is often difficult to deal with. If the criticism is delivered in front of others in order to humiliate you, then this is considered a form of bullying.

The simple way of dealing with bullying is to approach the person who is bullying you and ask them to stop. However, this is often the most difficult approach. It is therefore very useful to talk to trusted friends and family about your situation at work.

Leanne and Jenni were both subjected to persistent bullying at work. They explain how they found support and help through organisations such as the National Bullying Helpline, who talked them through the options available to them.