VCAL - Bullying Presentation

WORK PLACE BULLYING PRESENTATION FOR VCAL STUDENTS

Esma Voloder, an ambassador from the Bully Zero Foundation delivered an interesting and meaningful presentation to Year 11 VCAL Students on Work Place Bullying.

Workplace bullying is a serious issue that continues to adversely impact many workers and organisations throughout Australia. In general, it costs the Australian economy up to $36 billion each year. Included in this cost is loss of revenue, health care and productivity. Employees who face bullying in the workplace may experience a number of issues including stress, depression, illness, insomnia and even suicidal behaviour. Fifty-five percent of workers will quit their jobs as a result of bullying. In fact, it has been called the “silent epidemic” of our modern world.

Esma started her presentation with the following definition of bullying: ‘When an individual is repeatedly, deliberately and intentionally harmed by the use of words or actions against him/her by another person or a group. This includes threats, exclusion, harassment, humiliation (verbally, physically, and psychologically) or electronically making the victim feel oppressed, traumatized and powerless.’ We learn't the top five industries that experience bullying include: health, education, hospitality, government, defence and retail. This is hardly surprising since we have been bombarded with campaigns about showing respect to hospital staff, paramedics who are assaulted whilst on the job, and recent reports have once again confirmed how retail staff are often on the receiving end of abuse from customers. The most important thing to do if you are being bullied is to say or do something, however, small.

At the close of Esma’s presentation, students learnt of what to do if they ever find themselves a victim of cyber bullying:

*Report the cyber bullying material to the social media service

*Collect evidence – copy URLs or take screenshots of the material

*Report to esafety.gov.au (if the content is not removed)

*Block the person and talk to someone you trust

Judging from the thoughtful questions that were asked at the conclusion of the presentation, the VCAL class found the topic worthwhile and relevant.