Achieving a remedy for bullying and harassment in the workplace is unfortunately very complicated. If you have resigned from your workplace due to bullying and harassment, you can sue your employer for what is called "constructive unfair dismissal". If your treatment whilst at work has resulted in you becoming injured, you may be entitled to compensation from your employer for the injury that you received.

Certainly, before taking any action against an employer, the employee would be expected to raise a formal grievance within the employer's business. In these kinds of cases it is absolutely vital to establish that the employer was aware of all aspects of the offending behavior. The best way to prove the employer's awareness of bullying and harassment is to actually write letters and emails to the employer dealing with the issues in as much detail as possible. Such letters will ultimately be read by a Judge deciding on the issues of your case.

If a case is to be brought either for personal injury or constructive unfair dismissal, the personnel file becomes very relevant and will be examined in detail. By writing letters and e-mails to the employer, you are essentially putting your side of the story on the record, and will be able to prove what the employer knew or ought to have known at any particular time when your correspondence was sent.

A Court in Ireland is not likely to conclude that the employer was aware of facts which had not been communicated to them. A Court is certainly unlikely to hold that such an employer who did not have knowledge of all material facts is liable for their employee's injuries or loss of employment.

In summary, before resigning, or before bringing a personal injury claim, it is crucial to have written to your employer complaining and keeping them updated as your conditions of employment, and psychological health deteriorate. The more correspondence from you to your employer, the stronger your case will be. Depending on the circumstances and the behavior of the employer, we would say that no less than 10 letters are required from an employee to their employer before resigning.