Workplace bullying is a problem that cannot simply be denied

The reactions by Bill McGregor of the Headteachers' Association, John Stodter of the Directors of Education and Cosla's spokesman to the suggestion that bullying is "endemic" within six local authorities make interesting reading (The Herald, May 16). They seem to deny it is a problem on their own patches. Just a small review of existing evidence might be helpful.

Two years ago, Amicus and the DTI funded a national project that addressed the serious issue of bullying in the workplace, in which it estimated the cost to UK employers as more than £2bn a year in sick pay, staff turnover and loss of production. One in 10 employees said they had been bullied. Stress-related illness and absence levels in education were substantially above the national average.

In a recent study by Glamorgan University, it was found that nearly 80% of teachers had been bullied in the past two years, with many telling researchers that the problem was continuing and they were regularly bullied. Many said members of their school's senior management team were either the bullies or allowed bullying by others to continue, causing some teachers to think about leaving their posts or abandoning their careers altogether.

Nearly one in 12 staff working in the NHS has experienced bullying or harassment by their manager, according to Westminster figures. An official survey of doctors, nurses and administrators showed the scale of the culture of bullying that had to be tackled by hospitals and primary care trusts.

November 7, 2007, was Ban Bullying at Work Day - a message that doesn't appear to have got through to all parts of further and higher education. Academics at Leeds Metropolitan University claimed that 42% felt intimidated at work, 37% felt their work was belittled and 24% felt they had been humiliated by bullying. The University and College Union survey (with a 41% response rate) suggested a management culture at odds with the university's goals of challenging received wisdom, encouraging students to think and promoting collaborative inquiry. Some 96% of respondents said they felt inhibited about positively criticising policies and 63% reported witnessing bullying.

Denying the nature and existence of the problem without having proper evidence is not only to demean, insult and possibly harm those who have suffered; it is to sustain the corporate, structural and institutionalised hands (and voices) that guide a failure to properly address the matter. There is much evidence on our files to deny that substantial claims of bullying are "groundless", as Cosla suggests. This is a legislated Health and Safety at work issue. What is desperately required is for the Scottish Government at least to commission root-and-branch departmental research of workplace bullying so the truth can emerge and be properly inspected - and this is before tackling that which so much evidence suggests is equally endemic in the private sector.

From: http://www.theherald.co.uk/features/letters

Disgraceful events at Nottingham University

CAFAS - Council for Academic Freedom & Academic Standards - 7 Benn Street, London E9 FSU

29 May

The Home Secretary
Home Office
2 Marsham Street
London SW1P 4DF


Dear Home Secretary

You are no doubt aware that a member of the staff of the University of Nottingham, Hicham Yezza, who has resided and worked in the UK for the last thirteen years, is currently under threat of almost immediate deportation.

Mr Yezza has found himself in this predicament as a consequence of having helped a postgraduate student, Rizwaan Sabir, who asked him to print a copy of an al-Quaida document that Mr Sabir had downloaded from a US military website in the public domain. Mr Sabir’s academic supervisors confirm that the document in question is directly relevant to his research. Both men were initially arrested in connection with this document, but subsequently freed without charge. But Mr Yezza was rearrested on grounds related to his immigration status, and now faces deportation.

CAFAS takes the view that the original arrest and detention of these members of the University was unwarranted. We accept that, in the current climate of opinion, the police may well have had concerns about Mr Sabir’s interest in the al-Quaida document, and the assistance Mr Yezza gave him. But these concerns could surely have been quickly resolved, without breaching the principle of academic freedom, simply by consulting the academic staff in charge of the research in question.

We are not in a position to evaluate the immigration problems Mr Yezza is now said to face. But it is clear that these problems have surfaced solely as a consequence of the involvement of the police in Mr Sabir’s academic research, the legitimacy of which is seemingly no longer challenged.

In the circumstances, we think it absolutely vital that Mr Yezza be provided with a proper opportunity to prepare his defence and to have his case impartially examined by the Courts. To deport him without his being allowed this opportunity to defend himself would be patently unjust. We therefore urge you to delay deportation long enough for this process to take its course.

If you do not feel able to do this, I should be grateful if you would explain why, so that I may circulate your explanation to our members in UK universities.

Yours sincerely

Geraldine Thorpe
Assistant Co-ordinator, CAFAS

Cc Liam Byrne, MP

Tips for handling power

In her book 'Bad Leadership', Barbara Kellerman suggests some tips for those in power, to help them avoid turning bad. These include:

• Limit your tenure. When leaders remain in power for too long, they tend to acquire bad habits
• Share power. When power is centralised, it is likely to be misused, and that puts a premium on delegation and collaboration
• Get real, and stay real. Virtually every bad leader loses touch with reality somehow
• Know and control your appetites. These include the hunger for power, money, success and sex
• Be reflective. Virtually every one of the great writers on leadership emphasises the importance of self knowledge, self control and good habits. Acquiring such virtues is hard. Intent is required, but so is time for quiet contemplation
• Encourage a culture of openness in which diversity and dissent are encouraged
• Bring in advisers who are strong and independent
• Avoid groupthink. Groupthink discourages healthy dissent and encourages excessive cohesiveness
• Establish a system of checks and balances

From: http://www.trainingzone.co.uk

Lincoln acts to lift morale of discontented staff

The University of Lincoln is implementing an action plan to improve staff morale after an internal survey revealed that only 49 per cent of respondents felt "valued" by the university.

The survey, which polled more than 800 employees, 64 per cent of staff, was undertaken at the end of last year. The results were published in the current issue of the University of Lincoln magazine Contact. The poll suggests that staff believe the university falls short on managing change, communication, reducing bureaucracy and offering career progression.

Of those surveyed, 86 per cent said they felt more could be done to help them "prepare for and cope with change" and 57 per cent felt they were "required to do unimportant tasks which prevent them from completing more important ones". On the subject of career advancement, 59 per cent said that there were not enough opportunities for progression in the university.

The action plan, drawn up in response to the results, includes developing a communications plan for major changes, a framework for staff development and promotion and "less use of paper/memos and more face-to-face and telephone contact".

"When the staff survey was conducted, we were halfway through the appraisal year and only 57 per cent of staff surveyed had had their appraisal," said Jayne Billam, the university's director of human resources. "This can lead to staff not feeling valued."

"Now up to 90 per cent of people have been appraised. We had the highest level of staff engagement for our staff survey ... (and) the largest response in the sector compared to the other 32 HEIs surveyed by the independent survey specialist Capita," Ms Billam said. "The survey also showed positive results, with 83 per cent (of respondents) saying that the university was a good place to work."

From: http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk

...and who is this man...

... an under-qualified arrogant professor nicknamed "Nick the Prick"...

Lame duck HEFCE...

So what do we have here? Students were asked to beef up their ratings of Kingston University. The whole issue became national news and placed a huge question mark on the reliability of the student satisfaction survey. Kingston University - a serial offender when it comes to workplace bullying - is off the hook because the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE, read: taxpayer's money) declares that it is 'in discussion with the institution about the allegation'... Excuse me, but it is not an allegation - there is an actual recording of the event. HEFCE is also in discussion with Kingston University about appropriate 'next steps'. Don't worry HEFCE because Kingston University have taken steps to ban students from recording similar incidents...

Who is this man?