Embrace kindness and make your workplace a bully-free zone

February 16, 2016

Embrace kindness and learn more about what you can do to promote a respectful workplace for you and others.

February 24 is Anti-Bullying Day, an opportunity for BCNU members to join other Canadians in raising awareness and taking action to end bullying and harassment in the workplace. Also known as Pink Shirt Day, the event was started by two Nova Scotia students who organized a protest to support a Grade 9 boy who was bullied for wearing a pink shirt. Learn more at Pink Shirt Day.

WorkSafeBC created new policies in 2013 to address bullying and harassment. Their aim is to define what they are and to explain the duties of employers, workers and supervisors in order to prevent these kinds of acts from occurring in the workplace.

Bullying and harassment is prevalent in health care.

40 percent of Canadian workers experience bullying on a weekly basis³
Workplace bullying is associated with nurses leaving their job, or the nursing profession^1,2
1 in 3 nurses will leave a position because of bullying⁵
60 percent of new nursing grads leave their first position within six months, partly due to bullying⁶

Exposure to workplace bullying - whether in person or online - can impact the physical and mental health of workers, permeating all facets of personal and professional life. Not only does the worker suffer, so do their families and co-workers. This can lead to decreased job satisfaction, motivation, morale, and can negatively affect patient outcomes.

Embrace kindness and learn more about what you can do to promote a respectful workplace for you and others. Here's how to make a difference in your workplace:

Contact a steward and/or your workplace Joint Occupational Health and Safety Committee representative and participate in Anti-bullying Day events in your region
Know your employer's respectful workplace policy and procedures
Call Employee and Family Assistance
Access resources at crisis lines
Share your story on social media on Feb 24 using the #PinkShirtDay hashtag including on BC Nurses' Union's Our Nurses Matter Facebook page

Learn more at:

University of New Brunswick, "Toward a Respectful Workplace"
Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety, "Bullying in the Workplace"
Bartholomew, Kathleen, RN, MN. "Ending Nurse to Nurse Hostility: Why Nurses Eat Their Young and Each Other" (HCPro, 2006)

References:

University of New Brunswick, "Toward a Respectful Workplace"
40% of Canadians bullied at work, expert says - CBC News
Stokowski L., "A Matter of Respect and Dignity: Bullying in the Nursing Profession". Medscape Nurses, September 2010.
Johnson S., Rea R., "Workplace Bullying: Concerns for Nurse Leaders". Journal of Nursing Administration, 2009;39(2):84-90.
Griffen M., Teaching Cognitive Rehearsal as a Shield for Lateral Violence: An Intervention for Newly Licensed Nurses. Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 2004;35(6):257-63.
Kathleen Bartholomew, RN, MN.