In the next instalment of HRM’s ethical dilemma series, in partnership with The Ethics Centre, AHRI members consider how they’d respond to a bullied employee who threatens to expose their business in the media.

In part three of HRM’s content series with The Ethics Centre, where we ask AHRI members to respond to made-up ethical dilemmas, we explore what HR should do when they’re caught between allegations of bullying from an executive team member and a potential media scandal. 

The ethical dilemma

A member of the executive team has confided in you, the HR manager, about ongoing bullying from the CEO, to whom they report to directly. This is not the first time this CEO has been reported in this way, and they have previously been given extensive training and support from the HR team to build their awareness and skills in this area. 

Personally, you agree that the CEO’s behaviour is unacceptable, and despite being given opportunities to change, they haven’t.

The employee who has come to you is a star performer in the team but is increasingly demoralised and impacted by the CEO’s behaviour. However, due to personal reasons, they aren’t in a position to change jobs and they don’t want their relationship with the CEO to be damaged, so they ask that you keep the information confidential, which you agree to. 

Trusting you, the employee starts confiding in you more often; they treat you like a friend. One day, at an out-of-hours social event, over a few drinks, the employee mentions that they’ve had enough of the CEO’s bullying and tells you they’re planning to go to the media as an anonymous source and expose the CEO.

Do you break the confidence of the employee and take the matter to the CEO and/or the board? Or do you keep your promise and stay quiet?

Genevieve O’Reilly, Director of Finance and HR, Ortec

The simplest answer is to take the matter to the Chair of the board. There is a lot at stake here: the health and wellbeing of the employee in the long term; the reputation of the company; the morale and confidence of all employees; and last, but by no means least, the future of the company if it’s unable to retain its talent. 

Upper management needs to be held to the same standards as others, and so disciplined accordingly. If this was a regular employee – i.e. not an executive – they would have been placed on a performance improvement plan and held accountable for their behaviour. 

To mitigate any negative fallout from breaking the confidence, I’d have a frank discussion with the employee to align on why this must be escalated. I’d explain that it’s the remit of a board to exercise oversight of workplace culture, to support organisational talent development, and to select and monitor the performance of the CEO and executives. 

The board assists in setting the tone when it comes to legal and ethical standards, and compliance, and should always be involved in these matters because proactive measures can be put in place. If a board is only ever reactive to issues, then the damage is already done at an organisational level.

Brad George, People and Culture Manager, Arnhem Land Progress, Aboriginal Corporation

Directors and boards have obligations under workplace and safety legislation. Because of this, they will have to respond to a bullying allegation against the CEO. A board’s awareness of the issue will trigger a response no matter how the issue is raised. 

In this scenario, I would immediately report the potential for the matter to become public to my line manager, who I presume to be in the C-suite. I would say I’ve become aware that there is a possibility of an unformalised bullying claim that will directly impact the CEO and bring the organisation into disrepute.

 With that notification would be the following guidance:

• The absence of the use of the grievance procedure by the aggrieved employee or an investigation won’t undo the damage of the allegations being public.
  
• Any media queries may include knowledge of the organisation’s response to previous bullying claims against the CEO and show a pattern of behaviour. 
• The formalisation of the bullying claim through Section 789FD of the Fair Work Act has the potential to result in significant disruption and distraction to the business.
  
• Any action against the individual who raised the claims, if or when they are identified, will create additional obligations under the Fair Work Act, and most likely the relevant state anti-discrimination legislation.

As I am not on the executive team, I have now fulfilled my responsibility without naming the aggrieved person. 

Asher Green, HR Manager, VAE Group

​​This is complex because while confidentiality is fundamental, so is the duty of care and not standing for unacceptable behaviour.  

Realistically, by not managing the bullying issue up until this point, we have been ignoring the risk that brings, as well as the impacts that bullying has on individuals and their wellbeing, not to mention the probability of breaching our own policies. 

The standard we walk past is the standard we accept. The first step I would take would be to de-escalate the situation with the manager. Talk to them about not doing anything rash and ask them to chat with you the next day, with a clear head. I would talk through the process of managing the bullying claim internally, what that would look like, and how we can protect the employee from victimisation.  

I would also discuss the potential fall out of going to the media, to try and help them see the bigger picture outside of the impact to the CEO such as what it might mean to the broader business, which in turn could impact their team and their role. 

If the employee remained adamant they were going to go to the media, I would then outline that it would be my responsibility to manage the risk to the organisation and that I would need to bring it to the attention of the board for the matter to be dealt with further. 

How would you respond? Let us know in the comment section. Or catch up on part one and two of this series.

This article first appeared in the May 2022 edition of HRM magazine. If you’re struggling with ethical conflict at work or at home, there is a free service that can help. Ethi-call, run by The Ethics Centre, is a free helpline dedicated to guiding people through life’s hardest choices. Make a booking at ethi-call.com. And, to learn more about how you can facilitate an ethical workplace culture, sign up to AHRI’s short course on the topic.