This submission presents a new practical solution for bridging the gap between what we know about the causes of workplace bullying and what can be done to prevent it.

This project, funded by a SafeWork SA Commissioned Research Grant (CRG), is innovative in creating an evidence-based practical tool to assess the risk of workplace bullying before it occurs.

Bullying was measured using both a widely accepted international definition and the Australian definition used by Safe Work Australia. The prevalence rates using the international and the Australian definitions were similar: 9.7 per cent and 9.4 per cent of Australian workers respectively reported they had been bullied in the last six months.

In order to provide more detailed guidance to organisations regarding the risk management of bullying, this project took a fresh approach to understanding the organisational risk factors. First, we examined objective measures of job and organisational factors that may predict the likelihood of bullying at work. Second, we integrated traditionally-studied bullying risk factors within their...

Our research has revealed that risk factors for bullying exist at many levels, and claims arise for numerous reasons, not just due to bullying behaviour. Psychosocial safety climate acts as a leading indicator and also buffers the impact of bullying on worker wellbeing. Ongoing surveillance allows for identifying groups at risk, which can guide policy...