ADDRESS BY MR. TOM KITT, T.D., MINISTER FOR LABOUR, TRADE AND CONSUMER AFFAIRS, AT THE IRISH NURSES ORGANISATION SAFETY WEEK CONFERENCE IN THE CAMDEN COURT HOTEL, DUBLIN, ON THURSDAY 22ND OCTOBER 1998 AT 9:45 A.M.

I am delighted to be here today and to have the opportunity to address your Conference.

Since taking over the Labour Affairs portfolio I have been anxious to meet the key professional and major interest groups in the field of occupational safety and health. Nurses, as a group of medical professionals, are very much aware of the extent and types of injuries and diseases that can arise within the workplace. However, as a group of workers, they themselves are also very much at risk from a range of sources. Some years ago, in recognition of this, the Health and Safety Authority produced a leaflet entitled 'Who Cares for the Carers', the purpose of which was to highlight some of the dangers to which nursing staff can be exposed.

Unfortunately, despite the object of nursing care being the recovery and rehabilitation of patients, there is, ironically, often a problem of violence towards staff in hospitals, particularly in the areas of accident and psychiatric services. Whether this violence is threatening behaviour or actual physical damage, it must be made clear that this is completely unacceptable in this day and age. It is possible to predict, to a large extent, just where and when and under what circumstances these violent incidents are most likely to arise, and it is, therefore, very much the responsibility of hospital management to devise appropriate systems of work that will safeguard staff from this kind of violence.

I know that this matter came up for discussion at your Annual Delegate Conference last May and Lenore Mrkwicka has raised the matter on your behalf with the Health and Safety Authority. Like myself, the Authority takes a very serious view indeed of employers who fail to put in place arrangements to protect their own staff. This matter was also drawn to the attention of my colleague Brian Cowen, the Minister for Health and Children, and also to all of the Health Board and hospital management authorities. I can assure you that the Authority's Inspectors are also paying particular attention to the issue in the course of their inspections in the health sector. Where hospital managements are found to be lacking in the carrying out of their duties the Health and Safety Authority will not hesitate to issue prosecution proceedings.

Workplace stress is another issue of particular relevance to the nursing profession. Workplace stress arises when the demands of the job and the work environment exceed a person's capacity to meet these demands. As individuals we all have different ranges of skills and abilities, and while all jobs are likely to vary in their demands from time to time, any workplace where workers are regularly subjected to stress is one that demands attention. Where work is poorly organised or staff are subject to constantly changing demands over which they have little control the result is likely to be a heightened level of workplace stress. The reality is that workplace stress, like violence, should be dealt with as a predictable risk and specific procedures should be put in place to deal with and to control the problem. Where the problem is tackled honestly and seriously, staff will respond positively with higher morale, reduced absenteeism, and with a greater efficiency which is in everyone's interest.

A particularly insidious and repugnant cause of workplace stress is workplace bullying. Because it involves unacceptable behaviour by colleagues it is often more difficult for individuals to complain about it and is frequently not taken seriously. Workplace bullying is where aggression, intimidation and a need to humiliate dominate working relationships. A message has to go out very clearly from employers that this sort of behaviour is not acceptable in any workplace.

For a problem to be tackled people must first acknowledge it is a real problem, and there must be awareness of what can be done to tackle it. In order to put workplace bullying firmly on the agenda, I recently asked the Health and Safety Authority to put together a short information leaflet outlining the manifestations and the effects of workplace bullying and proposals for dealing with this problem. The Authority has now finalised their leaflet with the co-operation of a number of other parties.

I am pleased, therefore, to launch this text to-day, copies of which will be circulated to all major public and private sector employers, the Social Partners and the media. This is very much an awareness-raising exercise, the primary aim of which is to put workplace bullying on the agenda.

There are very many groups who are potentially exposed to bullying in the workplace, particularly those who might be perceived, in any way, as being different or more vulnerable. These can include employees of lower status in an organisation, those who show a willingness to challenge harassment, employees with very noticeable physical characteristics or, indeed, anyone whom the bully feels threatened by, including those who are competent, confident and/or popular with colleagues. Forms of bullying can range from actual physical contact to the more common verbal abuse or offensive language, isolation and exclusion from social activities. One of the most sinister forms of bullying can arise from the abuse of power by bosses who give impossible deadlines or set impossible tasks which are unattainable and are obviously designed to undermine the individual.

While bullying can occur anywhere, there is no doubt that some traditional workplaces with hierarchical structures may leave junior staff more exposed to incidences of abuse. Unless management takes a strong and pro-active stance against workplace bullying such practices will continue. I think the experience of many who work in the health sector will empathise with these views.

An initial step in tackling this problem would be that management in all employments should take the initiative by introducing anti-bullying policies. While line managers may have particular responsibilities here, any issue which involves changing or improving the culture of an organisation must be initiated with a clear and unambiguous message from the top management. Indeed, without this commitment from the top, policies will stay on the shelf instead of bringing about positive change in the workplace.

Indeed, it should be noted that the Department of Finance is currently engaging in discussions with Public Sector Unions with a view to developing guidelines on bullying for the Civil Service. This is a development which I particularly welcome.

As well as indicating that bullying will not be tolerated, an effective anti-bullying policy should indicate the types of behaviour which are regarded as bullying, the steps staff may take if they feel they have been targeted, and the support and rehabilitation available to staff who have been bullied. Those staff who are identified as bullies and who are willing to accept training to change their behaviour should be given this assistance, while the types of sanctions to be taken against those found to be in breach of the policy, should be firmly stated. For a policy to be effective it must have the support of management. It must be negotiated with staff and it must be backed by appropriate mechanisms. An anti-bullying policy is a natural addition to the Safety Statement of any organisation. This Safety Statement, of course, will be open to examination by inspectors of the Health and Safety Authority.

However, as with many other health and safety issues, the most effective solutions are often those which are agreed locally between management and workers in individual workplaces and tailored to the specific conditions and circumstances of that workplace.

Another area of workplace health and safety which is of particular concern to the nursing profession is the whole area of manual handling. The Manual Handling regulations are quite clear in stating that all places of employment must take steps to minimise the problem of lifting heavy or awkward loads. Where this is not possible adequate aids and training must be provided. The possibility of back injuries in hospitals for instance from lifting patients is well recognised and predictable and, therefore, is quite preventable. The onus is firmly on management to take the appropriate steps and set these down in their Safety Statement.

What permeates throughout all of what I am saying here to-day is the vital importance of the role of both the employer and employee in ensuring that lives and health are not endangered by being in the workplace. Our health and safety legislation is based primarily on the concept of risk assessment and risk management. This is an uncomplicated concept, the success of which stems from the fact that the risks are identified by those best placed to do so - the players within industry itself. It is the primary duty of every employer to identify and manage the health and safety needs of his or her own business, but this does not, however, confine ownership or responsibility for safe work practices to the employer alone.

Legislation can only really be effective when it is transferred from the Statute books to the workplace. One of the best ways of making this transfer is through the Safety Representative system.

You might pose the question as to why there is a need for a Safety Representative system when there are clear statutory obligations placed on employers. As we have seen, the existence of such statutory obligations is sometimes not enough in itself. The value of a Safety Representative system is that it is an inclusive system which gives ownership of health and safety matters to employees as much as to employers. The role of the legislation is to create an environment in which the health and safety culture can flourish at a global level and the usefulness of the Safety Representative system is that it can further develop and tailor this culture at a local level.

During 1998 there has been extensive media coverage and public debate about workplace safety. This, in its own paradoxical way, has helped to bring home the message that occupational health and safety is very much a legitimate business concern. It is over simplistic to portray safety problems as being solely the result of poor compliance with safety legislation. The reality is that employers and the workers and the State all have a finely balanced role to play. It is in the primary interests of all of these players to get the balance right. There is no one single loser when accidents and fatalities occur - we all lose. As I have said on other occasions, occupational health and safety is probably one of the very few areas where you can have a win-win outcome for all players.