RIBA defends handling of ‘buried’ bullying report

RIBA has defended its handling of an internal report into bullying after claims from people connected to the institute that it had been “buried”.

Two sources have told Building Design that the findings of an “investigation” carried out by external HR advisor Sue Baker in June 2021 were delivered to RIBA’s board but not shared with staff, despite expectations that it would be.

The report is said to contain allegations of bullying, sexism and unconscious bias against ethnic minorities over many years which has led to staff leaving over what is claimed are “unhealthy” working conditions.

RIBA said it takes allegations of “unacceptable behaviour” and the right for all staff and volunteers to be treated with dignity and respect “extremely seriously”.

It also denied Baker’s report was the result of an investigation, saying it followed a series of workshops held with staff during Mental Health Awareness Week.

In a statement, RIBA board chair Jack Pringle said that as part of the annual event it had “chosen to focus on fostering positive and respectful relationships between members and staff.”

他说，18名员工参加了三次研讨会，期间“有人提出一些担忧，包括观察到的不可接受的行为，以及与成员和其他员工难以相处的情况，其中一些可以追溯到很久以前”。

Pringle said Baker had shared her findings with the board on a “confidential and anonymised basis”, and the board had then agreed a set of “immediate actions” including providing targeted support for individuals and setting up an independent hotline for staff to raise concerns anonymously.

但是建筑日本vs塞内加尔比分设计已经被告知，在研讨会之后“什么都没有发生”，并且一套关于RIBA的人力资源和治理过程的指导会议在今年4月之前没有发生。

消息人士称，贝克也是在员工投诉后被带进来的，而不是为了响应心理健康意识周的计划活动。

在去年5月6日发给全体员工的一封泄露的电子邮件中，RIBA首席执行官艾伦•瓦伦斯(Alan Vallance)表示，在同事们分享了“不当行为、摩擦和冲突”的经历后，将举办一个研讨会。

Vallance added that questions had also been raised about how inappropriate conduct is handled, and the institute’s formal processes for complaints and grievances.

In a follow-up email sent on 7 June, human resources director Carl Straw said the RIBA would run two workshops “in the run up to Mental Health Awareness Week”. According to RIBA, three workshops were eventually held.

The email said the sessions aimed to enable staff to share their experiences with elected members and volunteers, and “offer ideas on how to further develop positive and respectful relationships”.

One current staff member told Building Design they felt that staff were “consistently undermined” and said RIBA was “not a safe working environment”.

The staff member said they believed there was a persistent culture of bullying at the institute which had got worse in recent years, with much of it directed towards female and non-white people in what they considered to be cases of “unconcious bias”.

Another source said staff were “continuously talked down to”, and they felt the findings of Baker’s report “had not been taken seriously at all”.

They said: “The attitude from the board was ‘this isn’t a problem, people are just complaining about nothing’. But [Baker] didn’t feel like that was the case, and staff members certainly didn’t feel like that was the case.”

普林格尔在回应这些指控时表示:“RIBA董事会和高管都很清楚:不良行为是不能容忍的，我们将继续支持我们的员工，并培养积极的工作文化。”

The comments come amid a row over how institutions respond to the allegations of bullying, racism and sexual misconduct at the Bartlett school of architecture uncovered in areport by investigator Howlett Brown last month.

RIBA president Simon Allford said in the insitute’sofficial responseto the Bartlett report: “Every educator and education provider has a duty to support the wellbeing and safety of their students, as well as their academic development, and have effective mechanisms in place to eradicate unacceptable behaviour.

“This report identifies extensive failings which have been acknowledged by the university who have made the commitment to taking immediate action. This, I am well aware, will be cold comfort to those who have suffered.”

Voting toelect the institute’s next presidentis currently underway, with results due to be announced on 2 August.