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Observer: "Bullying In Armed Forces On Rise, MoD Figures Reveal"

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"Shocking official figures reveal a surge in the incidence of bullying in the armed forces, with one in 10 military personnel claiming to have been the victim of "discrimination, harassment or bullying in a service environment" during the past year.

The figures, contained in the latest Armed Forces Continuous Attitude Survey, were described by defence minister Anna Soubry as serious, while a senior figure on the defence select committee said the bullying they revealed was very worrying."

Bullying on rise in armed forces, MoD figures reveal | UK news | The Observer
 
Only the Observer could link a rape followed by the tragedy of suicide with a survey on bullying.

My thoughts are that there is a greater awareness of bullying and the service is more likely to follow-up and investigate any reported incidents - surely something positive?

The continuous attitude surveys are not always truly reflective as some see it as an opportunity to complain if they are unhappy with their lot, rather than follow the correct internal procedures. Ask a recruit what he/she thought of initial training on their passing out parade and few will complain - ask them a few years later and you'll hear no-end of allegations.

Whilst not escaping the fact there are bullies in all walks of life and it needs to be stamped out in the Armed Forces, in particular. Some of the worst I've come across are so-called "educated" individuals that try to micromanage an experienced workforce because they are clueless themselves - they are probably the largest group. Likewise there are those that try to bully their superior Officers - it cuts both ways.

The other issue that is often glossed-over is the number of individuals that fail to disclose mental health issues prior to joining. The pressure of military life compounds the impact on their fragile wellbeing and eventually leads to a catastrophic meltdown - as ever, the service gets the blame rather than the selfish actions of the individual from the outset.

An emotive topic that should not be shied-away from, but as ever, uninformed sensationalist uniformed reporting bollocks from the Observer.
 
Further to Ninja's post I think it is possible the bar has been lowered as to what is perceived as bullying. I see the word being bandied about when people have been called nasty names when at one time it was defined by a more physical and intimidatory behaviour. I am not trying to condone any type of behaviour but merely suggesting the tolerance level has dropped.
 
I genuinely think the service has improved a good deal - certainly to when I joined. My life was a complete misery on my first ship due to bone-headed three-badge ABs that wrongly assumed time done equated to ability and automatic respect. Thirty year old thickos bullying 18 year old New joiners tends to be less prevalent nowadays.
 
I genuinely think the service has improved a good deal - certainly to when I joined. My life was a complete misery on my first ship due to bone-headed three-badge ABs that wrongly assumed time done equated to ability and automatic respect. Thirty year old thickos bullying 18 year old New joiners tends to be less prevalent nowadays.

Couldn't agree more. The last line in particular says a lot. As an impressionable 18 year old I sort of got taken in by this 'senior but not very good' for a while but with a little experience realised that is was just a smokescreen and really was a case of bullying to cover their own inadequacies.
 
I find it hard to believe that bullying is any more prevalent in service life than anywhere else, although it is not difficult to see how bullying in the forces can perhaps have a more detrimental effect on a persons well-being.
The service environment can be stressful and tends to take over your entire life for months at a time, so any instance of bullying has the problem compounded by the fact you work, eat, sleep and s**t with tormentors.
Its a shame the military gets such a bad reputation when it comes to bullying, vast majority of people I know have no problem picking up on abusive behavior and putting a stop to it. Service personnel tend to have a very well developed moral compass.
 
A certain amount of "bullying" is to be expected in the armed forces, it sorts out the morally weak from those who belong and at best pulls the ******* towards the light. Outright abuse is a definite no, no, though.
No one remember the boot blacking and scrubbing of crabs? It worked.
 
A certain amount of "bullying" is to be expected in the armed forces, it sorts out the morally weak from those who belong and at best pulls the ******* towards the light. Outright abuse is a definite no, no, though.
No one remember the boot blacking and scrubbing of crabs? It worked.

Why would you scrub a crab? Don't they have dhobey shacks on airfields?
 

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