One in 10 UK employees believes cyber bullying is a problem in their workplace, research has revealed.
The survey of 1,072 workers by the Dignity and Work Partnership found that one in five had been bullied at work by e-mail.
One in 16 told the partnership, jointly funded by Unite and the government, that they had been bullied by text message.
And the increased prevalence of portable communications tolls such as BlackBerries is making cyber bullying a problem outside working hours.
Half of those questioned said they would report bullying to senior management, while only one-quarter said they would go to HR and/or their trade union.
“Bullying in the workplace can destroy peoples’ lives,” said Mandy Telford, Unite Dignity at Work co-ordinator.
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“It also has a direct impact on an organisation’s bottom line, and we hope that making the financial impact clear will help management and HR staff build a business case for tackling the issue.
Workplace bullying is estimated to cost UK employers more than £2bn a year in sick pay, staff turnover and lost production.
