Unfortunately it got worse from there on. The ringleader (who was inciting the casual to do his dirty work, by defaming me saying that I was gay) just found himself another monkey. I decided that I had had enough and I was going to make a stand this time round. I complained to upper management. Upper management told me that the sorts of things that were going on, came with the territory and that I should not let it bother me. I begged to differ. I rightly pointed out that the behaviour of name calling, deliberately hindering me in my work and other such stupid activities were immature, counter productive and had no place in the work environment.

To cut a long sad story short, after a company investigator came out and asked the perpetrators if they were bulling me (what answer do you think they gave?), the company found there was no bullying going on and that I was the problem. Despite of the fact I presented them with a diary I kept of the goings on complete with dates and times of the incidents.

I made a workcover claim against the company for harassment and bullying. The company then tried to prove that I was mentally imbalanced and that I had imagined that I was being bullied when I wasn’t. It ended in arbitration where the company gave me an ultimatum. Either I resign with a payout and go away (never to work for them again), or they were going to make life very unpleasant for me and there would be no progress for me within the company. I resigned with the payout cause at this point I had really had enough. There was a mutual non-disparagement agreement made that the company later blatantly broke!

That’s what happens in Australia when people stand up for themselves against bullying! Incidentally I found it really difficult to find work after this.