Brodie Panlock committed suicide in 2006 at the age of 19 after being repeatedly bullied by three co-workers. In early 2010, four workers at Café Vamp, a small restaurant in Melbourne Victoria, were fined a total of $335,000 for repeatedly bullying or allowing bullying to occur to Brodie. In this particular case, the victim’s life was cut short when she began to feel unhappy and unsafe and the only solution she could find was to end her own life. “Brodie’s Law” represents a necessary increase in the penalties for bullying.
Workplace bullying is a large issue in Australian culture. I can think of several friends of all ages who have experienced this. I have even seen it happen and taken to initiative to complain to management, with zero action. It appears that unless someone is seen repeatedly engaging in bullying behaviour by a manager, they have the upper hand and cannot be fired. It is problems like this that allow bullying to continue.
In doing some online research for this story, I saw similar complaints by thousands of Australians. People feel helpless and believe that even if they speak up, nothing will be done to the perpetrator. The victim even begins to feel like it is their fault.
“Brodie’s Law” or to be specific, the Crimes Amendment (Bullying) Bill 2011, is a change to the Crimes Act that introduces 10-year prison terms for bullying. We have to ask however, if this is going to be enforced. One thing that has been reiterated throughout my research is that bullying in the workplace is everybody’s responsibility. Considering that about one in six people are bullied at work; in some industries the figure is higher, ranging from 25%, 50% to 97% (Duncan and Riley study), this sounds like sound advice. I would urge not only those being bullied, but those who witness it, to stand up and declare that it is not acceptable. This is the first step to a safer work environment for all Australians.
Not surprisingly, bullying has been an increasingly important area for psychologists to understand. Psychologist Evelyn Field’s website, www.bullying.com.au has sections devoted to workplace bullying. Evelyn is available for counselling and has recently published a book entitled ‘Strategies for Surviving Bullying at Work’. I would recommend viewing the information on the website if you are dealing with workplace bullying or suspect that someone you know may be. To take it a step further, I suggest that all of us make an effort to understand what workplace bullying may involve. Australia needs to join together to educate ourselves and make a stance against workplace bullying. Let’s respect the passing of Brodie Panlock by not allowing this to happen again.
Jessica—ADAVIC Volunteer
Workplace bullying is a large issue in Australian culture. I can think of several friends of all ages who have experienced this. I have even seen it happen and taken to initiative to complain to management, with zero action. It appears that unless someone is seen repeatedly engaging in bullying behaviour by a manager, they have the upper hand and cannot be fired. It is problems like this that allow bullying to continue.
In doing some online research for this story, I saw similar complaints by thousands of Australians. People feel helpless and believe that even if they speak up, nothing will be done to the perpetrator. The victim even begins to feel like it is their fault.
“Brodie’s Law” or to be specific, the Crimes Amendment (Bullying) Bill 2011, is a change to the Crimes Act that introduces 10-year prison terms for bullying. We have to ask however, if this is going to be enforced. One thing that has been reiterated throughout my research is that bullying in the workplace is everybody’s responsibility. Considering that about one in six people are bullied at work; in some industries the figure is higher, ranging from 25%, 50% to 97% (Duncan and Riley study), this sounds like sound advice. I would urge not only those being bullied, but those who witness it, to stand up and declare that it is not acceptable. This is the first step to a safer work environment for all Australians.
Not surprisingly, bullying has been an increasingly important area for psychologists to understand. Psychologist Evelyn Field’s website, www.bullying.com.au has sections devoted to workplace bullying. Evelyn is available for counselling and has recently published a book entitled ‘Strategies for Surviving Bullying at Work’. I would recommend viewing the information on the website if you are dealing with workplace bullying or suspect that someone you know may be. To take it a step further, I suggest that all of us make an effort to understand what workplace bullying may involve. Australia needs to join together to educate ourselves and make a stance against workplace bullying. Let’s respect the passing of Brodie Panlock by not allowing this to happen again.
Jessica—ADAVIC Volunteer
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