The Netflix series “Thirteen Reasons Why” has attracted its fair share of criticism. It portrays a graphic suicide scene which has raised concerns about the potential for copycats. Another concern by psychiatrists and other mental health experts is that it tends to suggest that there are definable reasons why someone commits suicide. This is a potentially damaging and dangerous message to send to anyone who might feel they contributed to a person’s death through inadvertent, thoughtless or unkind actions.
I understand and respect the swift action mental health advocates have taken to draw attention to these problems. The program is directed to teenagers who are potentially extremely vulnerable to these kinds of messages.
For institutions though, the story raises something that needs to be considered when preparing and enforcing anti-bullying policies.
The parents of the deceased girl, Hannah, are suing the school district in the program. They allege that her death was caused by bullying of which the school knew or ought to have known.
Bullying is insidious and often difficult to identify. However, it is a known problem in schools and workplaces. Organisations need to prepare for the prospect that bullying will take place, provide a mechanism by which victims or perceived victims of bullying can seek redress and then respond appropriately.
There are many Australian cases dealing with bullying. The psychiatric impact of prolonged bullying can be severe enough to render a person unemployable or for their quality of life to be severely diminished.
The cases are rarely brought against the bully who has dubious capacity to pay compensation. Common defences include that the organisation had no way of knowing that the bullying was taking place or that the complaints being made seemed trivial. The Court has pointed out that the very nature of bullying is that it often relates to a series of seemingly innocuous incidents. If the organisation has not put in place a grievance process or applies the grievance process poorly, it risks liability for the bullying it took no steps to avoid.
As you can see, bullying is a serious issue and an important part of the risk assessment process for any organisation.
