Can I refuse to do a group anti bullying course.

[Stardelight]

Long story short I work in a place where the management is toxic. When this is raised to them, they spin it and turn it around and accuse staff of being unapproachable or difficult. The management now wants to put all staff members on a anti - bullying course. I want to refuse as I don't see myself as a bully, I literally come into work, do my job to the best of my ability and go home. I understand it would be good to do the course as it would be informative in terms of spotting bullying in the workplace etc but i feel livid that actually none of the management are doing it. AIBU?

I’d do it then quote the definitions back to them re their behaviour. Doing it doesn’t mean you’re a bully just better aware of what is officially classed as bullying and acceptable in your organisation. Not doing it will mark you out.

Refusing a reasonable instruction - and whatever your position, this is a reasonable instruction - can result in a disciplinary or even dismissal.

No you can’t refuse. This is a reasonable request of management.

Anyway why wouldn’t you want to go? I started work at a school recently and went on a safeguarding course even though I am no risk to children.

I don't think you should refuse but I think it's reasonable to raise a query about why no one from management is doing the course. If they want everyone to be on the same page then they need to know the content of what is being delivered.

Get a new job, they sound awful

CPD courses are the sign of a decent organisation.
Anti-bullying sounds good.
Kind of like anti racist.
If anyone I line managed refused to attend a CPD on this kind of thing, I'd presume (maybe erroneously) that they didn't agree with the ethos behind it.

There's no implication here that you're a bully, this is just a way of raising awareness and helping people recognise it in all its forms, i've lost count of the number of random courses I've been sent on by different companies I've worked for over the years, they have ranged from interesting to downright silly, and even if I gain nothing from a particular course I just look at it as paid time away from my desk.

Companies should be mandating Equality & diversity training, and as mentioned if you just refuse to attend then you are opening yourself to discipline action or at worst dismissal.

Specific training isn’t legally required, but it does open the business up for legal action against their culture.

As you describe it, in a company with a toxic culture, if management aren’t taking training themselves and the company isn’t mandating equally to them, then the company is opening itself to legal action.

If a dispute and claim is made against a manager who has been trained and still discriminates, harasses, bullies etc then the liability is tipped towards them. But if the companies management culture provided no training, was happy with the culture etc then the company itself takes on greater liability.