After advice on dealing with harrassment in the ACT Gov workplace?

Oh man that spelling is atrocious better fix it before I get flamed:

‘ The fact that I am there to do a job (or try my best TO). I suppose it isn’t like THEY’RE withholding money, I am still getting paid. ‘

Wow no excuse for that.

Anyways I thank everyone for the advice. I really needed it. Cheers.

Thanks everyone for the replies. There is some great advice coming in for me to ponder over. I do like the ‘don’t be a victim’ idea, I was thinking about that today and it is easy to get sucked into that when you are under the cross-hairs and lose sight of the bigger picture. The fact that I am there to do a job (or try my best too). I suppose it isn’t like their withholding money, I am still getting paid.

Gazket – I still have my balls mate and I worry that is what may get me fired. When I was a second year apprentice I was bullied pretty bad one day until I jumped off my 8 foot ladder then threw it through a freshly sheeted (unpainted and unstopped luckily) gyprock wall next to this bloke. He never bullied me again and the boss thought it was piss funny.

I can’t do that in an office environment can I? What do balls have to do with standing up for yourself in the office?

Well, first, lose the “bullying and harassment” meme.

Back in medieval times, I was hired for a permanent position in a small family company. My supervisor, and his mate, were not involved in the hiring process.

So, I went there, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, and discovered that my boss and his pal in our work group of 3 was at best lukewarm towards me from Day 1. Later, I found out that they wanted another pal of theirs for the job, but had been thwarted by the boss. I was just the meat in the sandwich, no matter what I did.

To cut a long story short, you have to decide how much you want this job. What I did was to put in a stellar performance on the boss’ pet project, staying till 2 am on my own to pull it out of the fire, and then quit. And I told him why (he gave me a good reference).

This sort of stuff has been going on since employment began. Make up your mind what you want, what your limits are, and meanwhile do not ever fall into the role of a victim.

so you used to work in the building industry. Did you leave your balls behind as well.

Play on their fear tell them you are hear to take someones job because your a bunch of lazy nepotistic bastards now piss off and leave me alone or I’m going to snap.

Genie said :

Masquara said :

Genie said :

You mentioned you’re only on a 12 month contract. Are you being paid direct or through an agency. If the later. Take your complaint to the agency and they will take the matter further. If not, make a complaint directly with the HR manager.

I totally disagree with this advice!
You are in a position you can do absolutely nothing about. As a contractor, don’t complain to HR. They won’t give a flying. Assume that HR will gossip to your colleagues about your complaint (there is no such thing as ethics & privacy in the government sector). Don’t complain to your agency, either – you’ll get a black mark on your record, regardless of who is at fault, and you won’t get another contract. Just keep your head down, work hard, make friends among the nicer people, and identify a good referee. The tone of your post sounds as though you are already wearing a “V for victim” on your forehead. Get rid of it once and for all, and learn from your situation – adopt more powerful body language at work, and try to deflect the crap. Put fresh flowers on your desk, and family photos. The best outcome you can hope for is a bit of a good mark with the agency for putting up with the crap for a full 12 months. So sorry you’re going through this – I assure you, I have known people with watertight, uncontrovertible bullying complaints and they’ve been shredded by HR. You are, unfortunately, an outsider and all they have to do is sit out your contract and get rid of you. Really, really sorry you’ve lucked out like this.

Incorrect ! I used to do contract work, and after a 3 month stint in the ACT government where I felt like I’d been stuck in a torture chamber for the entire duration, ….

Interesting.

I recently did a short stint of contracting for the ACT government, and I was flabbergasted at the bizarre behaviour of the person who was supposed to be my supervisor. Complete and utter knob. And it can’t have been just him, because it wasn’t unusual to see women crying their eyes out in the car park after an encounter with their boss.

Unlike you, I said nothing. Even got extended. It was a complete and utter nightmare. I would never, ever do it again.

Join the CPSU and get in touch with them. That’s what they are for – they are professional workplace advocates that act on behalf of members. Become a member and find out how they can assist you. It’s inexpensive and totally worth it. Think of it as insurance.
CPSU represents ACT Govt and Cth Govt employees.
It sounds from your post like you are working in the ACT PS (who seem to have loads of contract staff, so you are not unusual). If this is the case, I would actively seek a transfer at level to another area.

Masquara said :

Genie said :

You mentioned you’re only on a 12 month contract. Are you being paid direct or through an agency. If the later. Take your complaint to the agency and they will take the matter further. If not, make a complaint directly with the HR manager.

I totally disagree with this advice!
You are in a position you can do absolutely nothing about. As a contractor, don’t complain to HR. They won’t give a flying. Assume that HR will gossip to your colleagues about your complaint (there is no such thing as ethics & privacy in the government sector). Don’t complain to your agency, either – you’ll get a black mark on your record, regardless of who is at fault, and you won’t get another contract. Just keep your head down, work hard, make friends among the nicer people, and identify a good referee. The tone of your post sounds as though you are already wearing a “V for victim” on your forehead. Get rid of it once and for all, and learn from your situation – adopt more powerful body language at work, and try to deflect the crap. Put fresh flowers on your desk, and family photos. The best outcome you can hope for is a bit of a good mark with the agency for putting up with the crap for a full 12 months. So sorry you’re going through this – I assure you, I have known people with watertight, uncontrovertible bullying complaints and they’ve been shredded by HR. You are, unfortunately, an outsider and all they have to do is sit out your contract and get rid of you. Really, really sorry you’ve lucked out like this.

Incorrect ! I used to do contract work, and after a 3 month stint in the ACT government where I felt like I’d been stuck in a torture chamber for the entire duration, I gave honest feedback to my recruitment agency (who I had done several contracts with previously with no complaints). They were grateful for my advice and told me I should have spoken to them earlier about the horrendous working conditions so they could have stepped in and done something about it.

I later heard from my recruitment consultant that they removed other staff from the office (on full pay until a new job was found) due to the unsatisfactory working conditions and refused to provide new staff. I’m not sure what happened down the line, as I chose not to be a part of the FWO complaint.

Another very important thing to remember is HR works for your department not for you. They will protect the department first and foremost and often people find themselves more deeply in trouble after talking with HR.

your situation happens a lot in the ACT government – I was bullied out of a job I had been selected for in a permanent position, they made my life hell – same thing happens a lot in the APS and it really depends on the HR management some can be trusted others can’t – my advice is try to find another position life is too short and no job is worth going through what you are experiencing and it won’t get any better

(1) Keep documenting everything that is happening.
(2) Get to know Bill’s and Ben’s supervisor both professionally and socially. That way the supervisor can get an independent impression of you before Bill and Ben complain to him/her about you.
(3) Look for a job elsewhere.
(4) Check out Section 9 of the Public Sector Management Act: http://www.legislation.act.gov.au/a/1994-37/default.asp. IF you have a solid case under Section 9 AND you can afford a good lawyer AND you are prepared to take the case to the Supreme Court, then you have a chance of “winning” a case. A “win” will probably result in a slap on the wrist for Bill and Ben, no benefit to you, and no prospect of ever getting a job with anyone in their social circle.