E-mail bullying on the increase

One
in six staff are bullied by e-mail, according to research released today.

The
poll of 3,400 staff, by internet job site reed.co.uk, shows that e-mail
bullying is more common higher up an organisation.

Directors
are almost twice as likely as secretaries to be bullied via e-mail on 28 and 15
per cent respectively.

The
report claims that e-mail bullying raises staff stress levels and can
drastically affect productivity.

Three
per cent of staff have been so distressed they had needed time off work or had
left their job.

Dan
Ferrandino, director of reed.co.uk, said: "It seems that e-mail bullying
is getting worse. The real problem lies in the medium itself. It is just too
easy to send an e-mail while tempers are running high, ignoring the effects it
might have.

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"People
are much more likely to take offence to an e-mail." 

By Paul Nelson