Bullying hits hard
Effects cost millions: study
ALMOST one in four Victorian students is bullied at school, with the long-term effects costing the state hundreds of millions of dollars, a landmark study has found.
Teachers busy dealing with bullying complaints and parents missing work to look after traumatised children have created a $135 million annual hit to the economy, the PwC Australia study revealed.
Researchers found bullying is a time bomb, with massive costs arising from chronic health conditions in the years after students leave school.
The study, commissioned by the Alannah & Madeline Foundation, lays bare the shocking prevalence of bullying in our schools, finding: UP TO 228,000 students are bullied each year by 136,000 bullies; SCHOOLS experience an average of one bullying incident each week; TEACHERS dealing with bullying complaints cost $85 million each year in lost productivity; CARERS missing work to look after students who avoid school cost the economy $45 million each year; and LONG-TERM costs of bullying are estimated to hit $510 million for each school year group in the 20 years after school, including $85 million for chronic health conditions.
Alannah & Madeline Foundation chief executive Lesley Podesta described the report’s findings as shocking.
“The trauma bullying causes victims, their families, schools and the community is significant and is felt both immediately and long after victims have completed school,” she said.
Ms Podesta said putting a dollar figure on bullying may seem “impersonal” but the approach was “a powerful way to shine a spotlight” on the issue.
The study defined bullying as an ongoing misuse of power through repeated verbal, physical or social behaviour.