This article is general information, not legal advice. Every case is examined on its own facts, and every cause of action has its own limitation period.

Sometimes, an employee feels unwelcome in their workplace; this may stem from the employee's own personal feelings, or it may be a situation that any reasonable employee would perceive in the same way.
At times, this negative experience is persistent, while at others, it involves isolated incidents.
Sometimes, the employee's experience stems from their work performance—for instance, if they frequently cause errors and the manager reprimands them. However, there are times when an employee feels that their manager has it in for them. This might manifest as constant shouting directed at the employee, a lack of career advancement despite long tenure, or being assigned tasks beneath their level. Such conduct can take many forms—behaviors that labor courts classify as "workplace bullying." While the law does not explicitly prohibit such conduct (with the exception of specific cases, such as under the Prevention of Sexual Harassment Law, 5758–1998), courts today do prohibit it, and relevant bills have been proposed; the key issues are determining when disrespectful conduct is prohibited under case law and distinguishing it from legitimate conduct.
However, even in the absence of specific enabling legislation, workplace bullying constitutes grounds for a lawsuit.
Establishing workplace bullying requires a thorough examination; a single message or a few isolated messages are insufficient—one must prove a pattern of bullying behavior in the workplace.

What constitutes bullying?

Bullying is behavior occurring within the employer-employee (or manager-employee) relationship that undermines a proper working environment in various ways. This harm can be verbal—including shouting, humiliation, and insults directed at the employee either privately or in front of others. It can manifest through exclusion or ostracism, unreasonable demands intended to humiliate, or excessive monitoring, extreme micromanagement, and degrading tasks.
Can an employer be sued for bullying behavior?
Sometimes the answer is straightforward—when the employer is the one engaging in the bullying... While suing the perpetrator directly is straightforward, a more complex question arises when the bullying party is a fellow employee or a junior manager.
In developing case law regarding the protection of a respectful work environment, the labor courts have mandated that employers ensure such an environment exists; this includes an obligation to prevent bullying behavior once it has been brought to their attention. An employer who fails to take action to prevent this is also liable to be sued, even if they were not the one engaging in the bullying.
Therefore, it is crucial for the aggrieved party to involve the employer and preserve evidence. Conversely, it is important for employers to prevent such conduct from recurring and to refuse to tolerate it—and here, too, preserving evidence is vital. For instance, if a single outburst is reported to the employer and followed by a reprimand, the court may view this as a reality of workplace dynamics; however, in cases involving a recurring pattern of bullying over months, the court will expect the employer to take more severe measures to halt the behavior.

Prevention of Sexual Harassment Law

At times, workplace bullying is accompanied by humiliating conduct related to sex and gender. To prevent unacceptable behavior, the law requires the employer (subject to certain conditions) to take action to prevent any recurrence of... ...comments regarding sex and gender—including repeated, rejected advances—and harassment directed at someone who complained about such harassment. The law requires the employer to establish an internal policy and appoint an official responsible for handling complaints; every such complaint necessitates an investigation and the creation of a record documenting the handling process.
The statutory obligation imposes a positive duty on the employer to take action and to document the steps taken and the outcome of those actions.

In summary:

Often, the gap between actual practice and the law lies in the evidence; the clearer the evidence is to the tribunals, the easier it will be to align practice with the law. Therefore, my recommendation to you, the readers, is to preserve evidence: filing a complaint or handling a matter without any documentation differs significantly from recording every action in real-time.
Our firm provides advice and assistance in dealing with such situations.