Royal Mail crackdown on sex bullying

The Royal Mail was today forced to overhaul its working practices after reports of widespread sexual harassment of female staff.

The company is to appoint 22 specially-trained investigators to handle claims of harassment. It will also set up a bullying hotline.

Managers will be briefed on how to deal with discrimination and external reviewers will check that staff are protected.

The move comes hours before the Equal Opportunities Commission was due to release the result of a sevenmonth investigation into the Royal Mail.

Its findings were expected to be hugely embarrassing for the company, providing evidence of endemic discrimination.

The EOC said it was suspending its investigation after an 11th-hour pledge by the Royal Mail to implement a three-year action plan to stamp out sexual harassment.

Royal Mail chairman Allan Leighton welcomed the decision by the EOC.

"We are delighted that the Equal Opportunities Commission has recognised that this issue is high on the Royal Mail board's agenda and that we are working to put an end to harassment of any kind," he said. "Any form of bullying and harassment is unacceptable because of the humiliation and distress that it causes."

Jenny Watson, deputy chair of the EOC, who chaired the investigation, said: "I am delighted that our negotiations with Royal Mail have led to this agreement.

"It is clear that Royal Mail's leadership team are committed to tackling the serious problems of sexual harassment that led us to start the investigation.

"I hope the changes that follow this agreement will lead to a huge improvement in the working lives of thousands of women employed by Royal Mail. The action plan should lead to a cultural change, to a situation where every member of staff understands the seriousness with which sexual harassment is viewed, and where managers will be able to deal with complaints quickly and effectively."

The investigation is the latest problem to hit the Royal Mail, which has been trying to revive its fortunes after losses of £1.2 billion last year.

It is facing its first national strike in seven years after the Communication Workers' Union threw out a pay offer for staff in return for changing working practices.

The company is also attempting to reduce its workforce with 30,000 voluntary redundancies.