40% of hospitality workers suffer bullying disguised as banter
A survey by law firm Irwin Mitchell into workplace behaviour found that 39% of people have experienced some form of bullying disguised as banter in the hospitality. This is third only to the sports industry where the figure is 50% and people who study music and arts (53%).
Close behind hospitality in the survey of 2,179 people were the accounting and finance and retail sectors, where 38% say they have experienced bullying of this nature.
The level of this kind of bullying in hospitality is above the UK average of 32%.
People aged between 45 and 54 years old are the most likely age group to have experienced this type of bullying, according to Irwin Mitchell, with workers in the north-west the most likely to have experienced bullying disguised as banter at 37%.
Over 35% of women in the UK workplace have experienced bullying disguised as banter.
According to the law firm, harassment or bullying of a worker occurs when a person engages in unwanted conduct which is related to one of the seven protected characteristics and has the purpose or effect of violating the worker’s dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for that worker.
It can lead to what is knows as 'quiet firing' where negative behaviour from an employer leaves employees feeling they have no choice but to leave their job.
Unwanted conduct includes spoken or written words or abuse, imagery, graffiti, physical gestures, facial expressions, mimicry, jokes, pranks and other physical behaviour, it says.
“There really is no excuse for treating employees in this way. Whilst some may consider banter to be light-hearted, making jokes at the expense of an employee or making inappropriate comments, can lead to staff feeling uncomfortable in the workplace and in the worst cases make them feel that they have no choice but to leave their position,” says Deborah Casale, employment partner at Irwin Mitchell.
“If an employee is being made to feel they’re not wanted and resigns as a result of an employer’s behaviour, this could be considered ‘quiet firing’. This can form grounds for constructive dismissal if it breaches the implied term of trust and confidence in the employment relationship and the employee has more than two years of service.
“If the comments are discriminatory, two years of service are not required. Employees should be aware of their legal rights in these situations and should take advice at an early stage to protect their position – ideally before resigning. Likewise, employers should ensure that staff are properly trained as to what could constitute inappropriate behaviour.”
