Highlands & Islands Regional MSP, Rhoda Grant who launched an anti-bullying signpost to support and services web site back in 2014 has intimated that the time is right to remind folk of the presence of the site with all the unfortunate rise in high profile cases recently.
Rhoda said “Bullying in all its forms is totally unacceptable and my Tobie site (http://www.tobie.org.uk/) was set up to help those affected by this anti-social behaviour primarily in the workplace and to help them get support by signposting them to services,”
She added: “Within the first year (2014) we had nearly 10,000 hits on our site, which just shows the size of the problem. Since 2014 another 5,548 visitors have looked at this site which is not marketed or promoted other than through my own social media sites.
“The individual who suffers at the hands of bullies is scarred for a very long time if not for life. Sadly, this can happen at any time in a person’s life, from childhood to old age.
“Such behaviour causes mental health issues to the innocent sufferer who is subject to bouts of anxiety, depression, stress, associated illnesses and ultimately absence from school, college or work.
“Employers have a key role to play in trying to stamp out this anti-social and unacceptable behaviour and as a stepping stone in the right direction, every employer and every school or college should make sure they have an anti-bullying policy which all staff are aware of.
“ I would like to think that any acts of bullying within the workplace or elsewhere, like at school or college, will be viewed seriously and where there is evidence, the perpetrator will be subject to disciplinary process”.
“Of course it is hard to get people to talk about bullying, but I would plead with anyone who is subjected to this form of cowardly behaviour to speak to someone about it in the first place, whether that be a colleague or a Line Manager or even a parent or guardian.
“I am hopeful that my site will continue to enable sufferers to seek that right advice and guidance, point them in the right direction and hopefully see the individual being in a position to deal with the bully and break away from this unwanted and despicable behaviour. The message is clearly “you are not alone” but together we can tackle this behaviour”.
