Australia is a civilised society. Bullying in whatever forms cannot be tolerated. Bullying at university comes as a surprise not because we didn't know it has always existed but the degree of distress caused.
We have heard of cyber bullying and school ground bullying. But senior academics, not just students, suffering mental distress from colleagues and seniors is difficult to grasp and comprehend. Has there been a real increase at the aggressors' initiative or victims are more open to air their grievances nowadays?
If the university's best response is that it happens in all large organisations, this is not good enough. No attempt is made to investigate or improve work conditions. No wonder the reputation of UNSW and other organisations with similar culture of sweeping the dust under the carpet will be tarnished in the long run. Why do some top management look at worse examples to cite in order to make themselves look better.
When the bullies take out on their victims for self gratification, they don't realise the distress and potential mental harm it may cause. Not every individual has the strength and opportunities to seek recourse and overcome the bad patch. It is not an exaggeration to extrapolate that bullying can drive the victims to illness or even deaths. This will no longer be a joke and it will be too late to
On the other hand, there may be a small number of fragile students and academics who are more susceptible to melting and depression. What they need is counselling. In such cases, escalation and penalty imposed on those those who want to get their work done may not achieve the desired goals.
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/sydney-news/university-of-hard-knocks/story-e6freuzi-1226429497231
A submission to the inquiry prepared by the National Tertiary Education Union said a confidential survey of more than 550 UNSW staff uncovered complaints about "unfair treatment, public humiliation, arbitrary misuse of power and repeated shouting, swearing and threatening behaviour in their work units".
Almost 40 respondents said they received or witnessed "unwanted sexual attention" while others reported "illegal discriminatory activity, pressure to retire and demeaning and discriminatory jokes".
One senior staff member was heard to comment on a colleague, saying she looked like "Princess Diana after the accident with the steering wheel through her face".
The submission said: "This was reported to senior management in the workplace but the respondent was unaware of any action taken.
NTEU branch president at UNSW Dr Sarah Gregson said in the submission she feared bullying was becoming an unacknowledged but deeply corrosive aspect of campus life: "The evidence we gathered suggested that, although UNSW has a bullying policy and other guidelines that outline acceptable workplace conduct, these policies are routinely ignored and harmful behaviour is often excused."
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