Yorkshire council staff fall victim to bullying

A Yorkshire Post investigation has revealed that more than 300 complaints were made during the past five years at 17 councils, with 81 reported at Bradford, the highest in the region.

Anti-bullying charities warned the figures could be the tip of the iceberg given the difficulties many staff have with reporting cases of intimidating behaviour.

The issue in the public sector hit the national headlines earlier this year when there were calls for the Cabinet Secretary, Sir Gus O'Donnell, to launch a formal investigation into Gordon Brown's treatment of his staff after a helpline revealed it had received several complaints from people working at No 10.

It followed publication of hotly disputed allegations that the Prime Minister mistreated staff, including claims he swore at colleagues, grabbed them by lapels and shouted at them. A spokesman for No 10 denied the claims as "malicious and false".

The figures seen by the Yorkshire Post could include complaints against councillors, management or even those made by council staff against the public.

They show that of the 349 complaints made during the past five years, 100 were not upheld or were rejected. Others were settled through either dismissal, mediation, disciplinary procedures or the parties involved leaving by mutual agreement.

Bradford saw significantly more cases than anywhere else, with 81, the next highest being North Yorkshire with 47, Doncaster with 38, Kirklees 36 and Wakefield with 34.

There were 10 or fewer at Rotherham, Barnsley, Hambleton,

Richmondshire, Harrogate and Scarborough.

Four authorities, including Leeds and Sheffield, refused to provide any information, stating they were unable to identify specific bullying complaints as the cases were not retained on a central register.

Government departments also saw wide variations in the number of complaints.

The Ministry of Defence military staff saw the highest, with 298 complaints made during the past five years. The next highest was the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) with 92, the Department for Health with fewer than 50 and the Home Office with 47.

The Treasury and the Cabinet Office refused to provide information, citing the Data Protection Act and the fact that cases were not retained on a central register.

Campaigner Liz Carnell, from the Harrogate-based charity Bullying UK, warned that support for adults was limited and her charity faces a lack of funding which prevents it from taking on workplace bullying issues.

She added: "We know from the number of desperate e-mails we get every day that bullying at work is a huge problem and one which causes great distress.

"Companies need to make sure that when people complain of bullying that they take it seriously because if these issues end up in tribunals they can cost a lot of money, particularly if the complaint is about sex or disability discrimination."

Bradford Council's operations area manager for human resources, Michelle Moverley, insisted it took all complaints of bullying seriously and had a system in place to deal with any complaints or grievances.

A spokesman for the DWP said it employed more than 100,000 people and these incidents represented a tiny proportion of staff numbers.

HOW COMPLAINT CASES STACK UP

n Bradford: 81 (28 rejected)

n North Yorkshire: 47 (no breakdown of figures given)

n Doncaster: 38 (one withdrawn)

n Kirklees: 36 (one withdrawn, nine not upheld)

n Wakefield: 34 (23 not upheld)

n North Lincolnshire: 24 (six not upheld)

n North East Lincolnshire: 23 (11 not upheld)

n Hull: 21 (only provided figures for the last four years, 10 not upheld)

n East Riding: 18 (no breakdown of figures given)

n Rotherham: 10 (three not upheld)

n Barnsley: Nine (one not proven)

n Hambleton: Four (three not upheld)

n Richmondshire: Two (both cases left the authority by mutual agreement)

n Scarborough: One (no action taken)

n Harrogate: One (not upheld)