Australian Safety Authority Accused of Staff Bullying
An Australian workplace safety agency whose activities include investigating complaints of workplace bullying is itself being accused of mistreating its own employees.
An investigation by Melbourne media agency The Age has found a toxic work environment at WorkSafe Victoria, in which employees have complained about being bullied by their bosses and being forced to work in a culture of fear.
“People are really scared to talk,” a former WorkSafe staff member told The Age. “How can we tell other people how to deal with bullying in their workplaces when we don’t?”
The Community and Public Sector Union is calling for an independent inquiry into WorkSafe’s culture. The union has handled more than 20 bullying and stress complaints from WorkSafe workers to date in 2011.
One WorkSafe inspector told a reporter from The Age that the workplace culture is “rotten.”
