Human Resources - Personal harassment protocol (L1760)

1. Summary of changes

1.1 This protocol has been updated within sections 3.3 and 3.10; both sections have been rewritten.

2. What this protocol is about

2.1 This protocol underpins our statutory duty to promote equality across all protected groups and our commitment to extend the spirit of that duty to all members of both organisations. This protocol, therefore, applies to all police staff, police officers, the Special Constabulary and volunteers. The principles of this protocol also apply to third parties, e.g., contractors, agencies using either Essex Police or Kent Police premises. This protocol is relevant to Private Finance Initiative (PFI) staff, however, any grievance or discipline protocol involving PFI staff will be dealt with by the PFI provider taking into account any evidence provided by both Essex Police and Kent Police in respect of an alleged incident and the implications of such matters if proven, will also take into account any requests made by both Essex and Kent Police in respect of sanctions.

2.2 This protocol and supporting good practice advice has been produced in consultation with the Superintendents’ Association, the Federation, UNISON and staff networks in both Essex Police and Kent Police.

Compliance with this protocol and any governing policy is mandatory.  This protocol is not, nor is it intended to be, contractual.

3. Detail the protocol

3.1      Purpose

3.1.1 Both Essex Police and Kent Police recognise that fair treatment of staff is crucial to gaining the confidence of all staff and to ensure that they are engaged and motivated to deliver the highest quality policing service.

3.1.2 It is the aim of both forces to provide a working environment where everybody is treated with dignity and respect. Both Essex Police and Kent Police find all forms of harassment or bullying unacceptable, and our goal is to achieve an employment culture where individuals are confident to challenge any such behaviour, without fear of ridicule or victimisation.

3.1.3 This protocol seeks to encourage employees to raise concerns promptly, to challenge and educate where behaviour may be inappropriate or insensitive and to deal with cases in an informal manner that encourages resolution between all parties wherever possible.

3.1.4 Both Essex Police and Kent Police will treat all complaints of harassment and bullying seriously, promptly and consistently and will give appropriate support to all parties. All complaints will be dealt with in a fair and transparent manner and without fear of reprisals.

3.1.5 Discriminatory behaviour, harassment or bullying are viewed as serious matters and may involve dismissal from the service in cases of gross misconduct.

3.2      Legal obligations

3.2.1 The Equality Act 2010, the Health and Safety at Work Etc Act 1974 (section 2), Employment Rights legislation, the Equal Treatment Directive and associated UK discrimination laws provide the legal basis for this protocol.

3.2.2 In more extreme cases, the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, and/or s154 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (intentional harassment) or the Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001 may provide legal remedies depending on the circumstances.

3.2.3 Individual managers and supervisors may be culpable for either their inappropriate actions or for failure to exercise responsibility in taking remedial action to eliminate inappropriate workplace behaviour.

3.3      Harassment

3.3.1 Harassment is when bullying (see section 3.6 below) or unwanted behaviour is about any of the following “protected characteristics” under the Equality Act:

• age
• disability
• gender reassignment
• race
• religion or belief
• sex
• sexual orientation

3.3.2 Harassment because of pregnancy or maternity is treated differently and could be direct discrimination.

3.3.3 The Equality Act 2010 defines harassment as unwanted conduct related to a relevant protected characteristic which has the purpose or effect of:

• violating the dignity of another person
• creating for that person an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment

3.3.4 What does or does not amount to harassment can be a question of degree – a one off joke which the individual affected says they find inappropriate is unlikely to be harassment if there are no further such incidents.

3.3.5 An individual does not have to set out to harass someone for it to have that impact; the key point is whether or not it is reasonable for the affected person to feel that their dignity has been violated or they are being subject to an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment.

3.4      Protected characteristics

3.4.1 The Equality Act 2010 act describes nine protected characteristics, which cannot be used as a reason to treat people unfairly. Every person has one or more of the protected characteristics, so the Act protects everyone against unfair treatment. The protected characteristics are:

1. age
2. disability
3. gender reassignment
4. marriage and civil partnership
5. pregnancy and maternity
6. race
7. religion or belief
8. sex
9. sexual orientation

3.4.2 A person does not have to have the protected characteristic themselves but may be subjected to harassment due to their association with someone who does or they may simply be offended because the conduct itself relates to a protected characteristic e.g. general remark about disabled people or Gypsies or Travellers.

3.5      Unwanted conduct

3.5.1 This refers to unsolicited, offensive behaviour that fails to respect the rights of others. The word unwanted means unwelcome or uninvited. The affected individual does not have to say that they object to the behaviour for it to be unwanted.

3.5.2 Unwanted conduct can be of a sexual nature or spoken or written words of abuse, imagery, graffiti, physical gestures, facial expressions, mimicry, jokes, pranks, and acts affecting a person’s surroundings or other physical behaviour.

3.5.3 It is not possible to produce a definitive list of unacceptable behaviour within the workplace which could constitute harassment but for some examples of unacceptable behaviour please refer to The Equality Act 2010: harassment in the workplace.

3.6      Bullying at work

3.6.1 Bullying is not specifically defined in law, but ACAS describe bullying as:

“Bullying is behaviour from a person or group that's unwanted and makes you feel uncomfortable, including feeling:

• frightened
• less respected or put down
• made fun of

3.6.1.1 Examples of bullying at work could include:

• someone has spread a false rumour about you
• someone keeps putting you down in meetings
• your boss does not let you go on training courses, but they allow everyone else to
• your boss keeps giving you heavier workloads than everyone else
• your team never lets you join social events
• someone at the same or more junior level as you keeps overruling your authority

3.6.1.2 The bullying might:

• be a regular pattern of behaviour or a one-off incident
• happen face-to-face, on social media, in emails or phone calls
• happen at work or at work social events
• not always be obvious or noticed by others

3.6.2 Bullying can also happen from staff towards a more senior employee, a manager or an employer (this can be called 'upward bullying' or 'subordinate bullying'). It can be from one employee or group of employees.

3.6.2.1 Examples of upward bullying can include:

• showing continued disrespect
• refusing to complete tasks
• spreading rumours
• doing things to make you seem unskilled or unable to do your job properly

3.6.2.2 It can be difficult if you’re in a senior role to realise you’re experiencing bullying behaviour from your staff. It’s important to consider the real reasons for the behaviour. For example, there might be a wider issue with the culture of the department or organisation. Employers and managers should work together to identify the cause of the issue and address it.

3.6.3 Bullying can be either overt (obvious) and covert (discreet, subtle). It is not possible to produce a definitive list of unacceptable behaviour within the workplace which could constitute bullying but for some examples of bullying please refer to the following link: The Equality Act 2010: harassment in the workplace.

3.7      Victimisation

3.7.1 Victimisation is a specific act whereby an individual suffers detrimental treatment as a result of having made or supported a complaint, grievance or employment tribunal claim. Victimisation will not be tolerated by either organisation.

3.8      Expected standards of behaviour

3.8.1 It is the duty of all officers and members of police staff to create a workplace free from harassment and bullying. All officers and staff must be mindful that their attitudes and behaviour have a direct impact on the people they work with.

3.8.2 All police officers and police staff within Essex Police and Kent Police are required to adhere to the agreed Standards of Professional Behaviour. The standards which are of particular relevance to this protocol are authority, respect and courtesy and equality and diversity.

3.9      Responsibilities of managers and supervisors

3.9.1 Managers and supervisors have a particular responsibility to set an example and undertake their management duties fairly and in a manner that treats people with dignity and respect.

3.9.2 All managers and supervisors are responsible and accountable for taking immediate action to stop any harassment or intimidation of which they are aware. Well-considered and constructive challenges should be part of a manager’s and supervisor’s role and will ensure achievement of higher standards of service delivery and organisational performance. Failure to take appropriate action will be considered a failure to fulfill the responsibilities of the position.

3.9.3 Managers and supervisors are expected to familiarise themselves with guidelines to assist with the management of stress.

3.9.4 Where managers and supervisors are dealing with unfamiliar situations they are encouraged to use the available HR support but ownership of the issue will remain with the manager.

3.10    Resolution process

3.10.1 If you believe you have been subjected to, or have witnessed harassment and/or bullying you are encouraged to raise your concerns. You should not be afraid to object about inappropriate, insensitive or unacceptable behaviour. All concerns raised will be dealt with sensitively and taken seriously.

3.10.2 Informal resolution is often the most effective method to resolve matters relating to harassment and bullying. Dealing with such matters early and informally, for example by explaining to the individual why their behaviour is inappropriate, insensitive or unacceptable, can mean matters are quickly and sensitively resolved.

3.10.3 In cases where informal resolution is not possible or appropriate the grievance process should be used to address and resolve these issues. Throughout the grievance process the wishes of the individual raising the grievance will be the prime consideration. However, any form of harassment must be referred to a senior manager or an appropriately qualified HR professional who, in serious cases may refer the matter to the Professional Standards Department with or without the victim’s consent.

3.10.4 The full grievance resolution protocol is detailed in L1420 Protocol - Grievance.

3.10.5.  If the above actions are not suitable or if the behaviour does not cease you have an obligation to tell a supervisor or manager (not necessarily your own supervisor or manager), in order to give the organisation an opportunity to take action.

3.11    Formal capability, disciplinary and police performance and misconduct protocols

3.11.1 Protocols for dealing with alleged criminal or disciplinary offences reported by staff are well established and are as detailed in L1200 Protocol - Police Staff Discipline.

3.11.2 Where members of police staff do not perform their duties to the required standard the capability protocol is available as detailed in the joint capability protocol for Essex and Kent.

3.11.3 The Police (Performance) Regulations 2008 can be used for misconduct and performance issues involving police officers.

3.12    Advice and support

3.12.1 Any police officer or member of police staff who has a problem at work can gain confidential assistance from a variety of people within each organisation. These include:

Essex Police	Kent Police
Line manager or other manager in whom you have confidence	Line manager or other manager in whom you have confidence
Unison/Federation representative/Superintendents’ Association	Unison/Federation representative/Superintendents’ Association
Appropriately qualified HR professional	Appropriately qualified HR professional
The Welfare Department	The Welfare Department
Essex Police Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgendered Network (NEXUS)	Kent Gay Police Association
Essex Minority Ethnic Support Association (MESA) (previously Essex Black Police Association)	Kent Minority Ethnic Police Association
Essex Police Disability Network	Kent Network of Women
Senior Women Officers’ Forum	Christian Police Association, Kent branch
Worklife Balance Network (support for working parents, carers and part-time workers)	Crystal Clear – support network for members with a disability or those caring for someone with a disability
“Fairplay Advisers” network

4. Equality Impact Assessment (EIA)

4.1 The author has assessed this document, and the equality impact is considered high.

5. Risk assessment

5.1 There is no specific risk assessment or health and safety consideration thought relevant to the content of this protocol.

5.2 Officers and members of police staff engaged within the process must remain aware that they must follow the protocol correctly otherwise the risk to the organisation of a possible employment tribunal could be raised. A failure to fully adopt the principles set out in this protocol could have a detrimental effect upon the reputation of the organisation.

6. Consultation

6.1 The following have been consulted during the formulation of this document:

• Unison/Federation
• HR Partners
• Diversity/Health and Safety

7. Monitoring and review

7.1 This protocol will be reviewed every two years by, or on behalf of, the HR Delivery Manager.

8. Governing force policy

Related force policies or related protocols, procedures (Essex)/linked standard operating procedures (Kent)

8.1 This HR protocol supports the overarching HR policy L1.

• L01420 Protocol – Grievance
• L01200 Protocol - Discipline
• L01100 Protocol - Capability

8.2      Data security

8.2.1 Essex Police and Kent Police have measures in place to protect the security of your data in accordance with our Information Management policy.

8.3      Retention and disposal of records

8.3.1 Essex Police and Kent Police will hold data in accordance with our Records Review, Retention and Disposal policy.

8.3.2 We will only hold data for as long as necessary for the purposes for which we collected.