One in five New Zealand workers say they’ve experienced bullying in the past year, with experts warning the cost to businesses stretches far beyond morale.
Pink Shirt Day may have started as a campaign against schoolyard bullying, but nearly two decades on, the conversation has expanded well beyond the playground.
Fresh figures from the Mental Health Foundation estimate workplace bullying is costing New Zealand businesses around $1.34 billion annually through absenteeism, lost productivity, staff turnover, investigations and formal complaints.
“It can be the intimidation, threatening behaviour, it might be humiliating people in front of other staff, but a lot of what you don’t see is that covert behaviour,” Mental Health Foundation workplace wellness lead Kylie Ryan said.
“Like being overloaded with work compared to colleagues… or being set up to fail.”
The foundation said one in five New Zealand workers experienced bullying in the workplace over the past 12 months contributing to that financial loss.
Chief executive Shaun Robinson said the impact on workers could be profound.
“When you think about what bullying does, it makes someone feel unsafe, like to the point of being frightened and scared and not wanting to be in that space,” Robinson said.
“It makes people feel less than and that they’re not good enough, that they’re not okay.”
Cost to business
The $1.34 billion figure comes from absenteeism, reduced productivity, staff turnover and the cost of workplace complaints and investigations.
Ryan said businesses often underestimated the ripple effect toxic workplace culture could have across entire teams.
“You lose the knowledge that they take away,” she said.
“And the people around them notice it. So everyone kind of hunkers down and isolates a little bit and that’s not a culture that’s going to support development of the business.”
The Mental Health Foundation said many workers experiencing bullying eventually leave their jobs altogether, with some only making formal complaints after resigning.
Govt launches workplace mental health toolkit
The issue has also caught the Government’s attention.
This week, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey launched a new workplace mental health toolkit aimed at helping businesses better support staff before issues escalate.
The toolkit includes:
- Access to free counselling through the 1737 helpline
- Workplace wellbeing guidance for employers
- Digital mental health support tools, including the Groove app
- Information on free face-to-face support available through the Access and Choice programme
Speaking to BNZ Breakfast earlier this week, Doocey said improving mental wellbeing at work could also improve productivity.
“The data shows conservatively they can see a 6 to 10% increase in productivity through improved mental health,” he said.
He said younger workers increasingly expected employers to take workplace wellbeing seriously.
“A lot of young employees now want to see workplace wellbeing initiatives in their employment and they’re asking employers what are they doing for their work-life balance,” he said.
‘Responsibility’ for business
Businesses supporting Pink Shirt Day say workplace culture is no longer just an HR issue.
Tim Diamond from the Cotton On Foundation said companies had a responsibility to create safer environments for staff.
“It’s actually not only benefit to the business, but it’s actually responsibility,” he said.
“When you think about great businesses that are out there, they’re also equally impacting community.”
The Mental Health Foundation said while policies and reporting systems are important, meaningful change only happens when staff feel genuinely safe speaking up.
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