BAFTA and the BFI have announced a new employer Action List, aimed at tackling bullying, harassment and racism in the workplace.
Research commissioned by The Film and TV Charity, published in February 2020, which collected data on more than 9,000 workers, revealed that bullying remains highly prevalent – across all sub-sectors, 84 per cent had experienced or witnessed bullying or harassment, with even higher figures in some sub-sectors.
The organisation said the new Action List for film and television outlines actions that all employers can take to prevent and tackle workplace bullying, harassment and racism and demonstrate their commitment to tackling the issue. It makes further recommendations including taking the new ScreenSkills online training module on bullying and harassment, and ensuring all employees and freelancers are aware of the new suite of bullying support services has also been launched by The Film and TV Charity.
Those support services include free, independent services for everyone who works behind the scenes in UK film, TV and cinema – employees and freelancers. They Film and TV Charity said the services have been designed and delivered as part of the Whole Picture Programme, a two-year project co-funded by key industry partners and supported by leading mental health charity Mind to design and launch trusted support, tailored for people who work in the UK industry.
Among the recommendations in the Action List is the use of “designated individuals” who can advise on the process for dealing with bullying reports, something aimed at smaller companies or productions who don’t have large HR departments to deal with any complaints or queries.
The Action List can be downloaded at the BFI’s website.
