Civilian staff `often bullied'

FOUR OUT of every ten civilians working for the police have been bullied, with many being forced to leave their jobs, a survey said yesterday.

Civilians reported being humiliated by uniformed officers who refused to let them leave their desks and timed their meal breaks. One found sharp knives deliberately concealed in a washing-up sink.

Three-quarters of those bullied said the treatment had affected their health. Of the 690 respondents, three had considered suicide and 30 per cent had taken time off work for stress, depression or anxiety. One said she felt "sick dread at what would happen at work each day" while another said she had become "paranoid about being watched".

The survey, done by Staffordshire University for Unison, the public service union, found that 40 per cent of the respondents had been bullied in their police workplace: another 24 per cent had seen such behaviour. Civilian managers were often responsible, but 43 per cent of those bullied said their persecutors had been uniformed officers.

The general secretary of Unison, Rodney Bickerstaffe, said: "Police support staff should not be made ill or forced to contemplate suicide because of bullies. We want to work with the police to stamp out this workplace bullying. A new culture is needed in Britain's police forces to make sure that people are treated with respect."

The report's author, Charlotte Rayner, a senior lecturer in corporate strategy, said: "Many civilians in the police work under difficult circumstances where errors can have major implications. If that stress is added to then the job can become unbearable."