A survey of parliamentary staff shows an increasing number are experiencing clinical levels of psychological distress. But one official said the problem runs far deeper than tensions over recent Middle East wars. staff.
I’ve been working in Westminster for almost three years and I can honestly say I feel safer outside the House of Commons than inside it.
It may seem strange, given the renewed focus on the safety of parliamentarians in the debate around Gaza, but it is not the recent outdoor protests that scare me.
What scares me every day is the undercurrent of bullying, harassment, and intimidation that goes on within the so-called mother of all parliaments, and how powerless we are to stop it. .
Sadly, it is not uncommon in Westminster to walk into the toilets and find members of Parliament’s staff in tears.
Work pressures are immense and increasing. Every time there is a national or international crisis, ordinary people flood the mailboxes of already screaming members of Congress.
They are polite and almost always desperate, but they can also be abusive and threatening at times.
This is a concern in the regular workplace as well. But that can be difficult in a Congress that says “that’s the way it is here” and has no intention of changing anything.
I’ve worked for several members of Congress, and while my current boss is supportive, the workload is ridiculous. I am effectively a personal assistant, communications director, chief policy adviser and administrative assistant to an MP, but my salary is well below the London average of £60,000 and my job security is shockingly poor.
The parliamentary structure means that MPs are employed, but some MPs have little ability to manage themselves, let alone entire teams.
Staff members are warning each other to avoid working for certain members of Congress. Some people roll their eyes when we pass each other at odd hours, we hear hushed whispers in the hallway about the MP’s latest rant, and we Whatsapp message each other our silent frustrations to get us through the day. You may also see.
We may have over 3,700 members across the UK, but there is a sense of solidarity in what we are going through.
When things don’t go well, I feel extremely alone. I have heard colleagues share their experiences of receiving severe condescension and even violence from members of Congress when they received flying objects in their small offices. Many people feel they cannot complain because ultimately their job is at stake.
You may choose to go through a formal grievance process, but at that point it’s either they get their way, you lose your job, or worse, your reputation is smeared by your legislators. It’s a natural conclusion. Many people won’t care.
In my experience, the incidents of sexual harassment, bullying, and intimidation that make the news are just the tip of the iceberg. More happens and it gets swept under the carpet. The truth is, we are still considered expendable, even though our legislators’ offices primarily function only as a result of our efforts.
At the moment it is particularly difficult for my colleagues from ethnic minority backgrounds. They feel very at risk, but when it comes to safety discussions, there is little value in hindsight.
In recent weeks, we have seen a series of inflammatory and incendiary attacks by a series of senior figures including Suella Braverman, Lee Anderson, Paul Scully, Michael Gove and Tory mega-donor Frank Hester. I saw speciesist and dangerous language being used.
As a staff member, I am completely powerless to do anything about the fact that members of Congress walk into chambers and use their parliamentary privilege to say horrible things about entire communities with zero accountability. Eventually, you will have to share something like this: Lift with them the next day.
My colleagues say they’re scared to walk around in a place where the power imbalance is so great that they can’t deal with it, and they can’t deal with it, and where just being there is seen as a threat.
I and many others have recently sought counseling from our GPs because we are unable to address our concerns internally.
We have benefits services and helplines for staff, but we often feel like our concerns are personal issues when in reality the issues are much bigger than workload and workplace culture issues. tend to be treated as such.
The truth is that Westminster needs structural reform. Pressures on the system are building, building, building.
If safety were more than a political football in this place, our concerns would have already been addressed, but instead we are left dangerously close to breaking point. .
As told by Josh Halliday
