10. Bullying, harassment, discrimination and racism
Migrant workers in health, care and cleaning are often exposed to bullying, harassment and racist discrimination in the workplace. These experiences may come from managers, colleagues, service users or other members of the public, and can range from racist comments or exclusion to unfair treatment, verbal abuse, threats or physical harm. For many workers, these experiences are part of wider structural inequalities that make it harder to speak out or seek support.
Language barriers, fear of losing a visa or job, and lack of knowledge about rights often stop workers from challenging what’ s happening. Employers may dismiss complaints or fail to act, especially in outsourced or poorly regulated settings. Some may not even have established formal grievance procedures.
This chapter explains what bullying, harassment and discrimination can look like in practice, sets out the legal framework, and offers guidance for union reps and caseworkers on how to respond. While some of these harms may be subtle or difficult to prove, they should always be taken seriously.
What bullying, harassment and discrimination look like
Migrant workers may experience:
• Verbal abuse or threats, including racist or derogatory language
• Being given the worst shifts or tasks
• Being shouted at, undermined or set up to fail
• Colleagues excluding them from team discussions
• Managers scrutinising their work more than others
• Being denied training, promotion or fair hours
• Racial jokes, microaggressions or hostile behaviour.
In many cases, these behaviours are not isolated. They reflect broader problems in the workplace and are made worse by a lack of protections or poor oversight. Racism and bullying may come from patients or service users as well as staff.
The UK government defines bullying as“ behaviour from a person or group that’ s unwanted and makes you feel uncomfortable, including feeling frightened, less respected or put down, or made fun of.”( www. gov. uk / workplace-bullying-andharassment).
54 LRD • Supporting migrant workers