Having an Investigation Committee Alone Is Not Enough!Under the New Law, Companies May Be Penalized if Workplace Bullying Investigators Have Not Completed 3 Hours of Training

“Our company has already established and announced a workplace bullying complaint channel. That should be enough, right?”

Last week, I was asked this question by the chairman of a listed company during a dinner gathering.

I told him that it is not enough.

This is also a common misconception among many HR managers and corporate executives.

Let us first look at Article 10, Paragraph 3 of the upcoming Draft Guidelines for the Prevention of Workplace Bullying:

“Members of an employer’s workplace bullying investigation committee shall complete at least three hours of workplace bullying prevention training. External professionals shall possess experience in labor rights or related dispute-handling matters.”

Therefore, once the new workplace bullying provisions officially take effect, the real legal risk for companies will not simply be whether they have designated or publicly announced a responsible unit or investigation committee. The real issue is:

Are the personnel responsible for handling and investigating workplace bullying actually qualified?

In other words, the direction of the new workplace bullying regulations and related subordinate rules is already very clear. The Ministry of Labor and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are no longer merely requiring companies to “set up a reporting window.” Instead, employers with more than 100 employees must ensure that personnel responsible for investigating workplace bullying cases receive at least three hours of professional training.

The reason is simple.

Based on past experiences with workplace sexual harassment prevention, many cases did not fail because of the misconduct itself, but because of the company’s mishandling afterward. Therefore, drawing from Article 6 of the Enforcement Rules of the Sexual Harassment Prevention Act, the Ministry of Labor now requires investigation committee members to complete at least three hours of workplace bullying prevention training in order to develop the professional competence necessary for proper investigations and case handling.

Keywords: workplace bullying, training, investigation committee, Occupational Safety and Health Act, external experts

Training inquiries: Yexin Law FirmTraining Inquiry Form

First: Untrained investigators often become the source of secondary harm.

For many workplace bullying victims, the most painful and unacceptable experience is not necessarily the initial humiliation or abuse itself.

Rather, it is what happens after they finally gather the courage to file a complaint, only to be asked:

• “Maybe he just has a bad temper?”

• “Are you being overly sensitive?”

• “Managers naturally have supervisory authority.”

• “Your supervisor is simply more direct in communication.”

• “Could this just be a misunderstanding?”

• “Would you consider mediation instead? If you insist on filing a complaint, it could create a lot of trouble for the company and may affect your future here…”

This style of questioning often causes complainants to emotionally collapse.

The defining feature of workplace bullying cases is the existence of unequal power relationships.

If investigators lack “power sensitivity,” they may mistakenly interpret humiliation, isolation, or deliberate mistreatment as ordinary management practices.

That is precisely why the new rules specifically require responsible personnel to learn how to identify power imbalances, rather than merely focusing on surface-level conflicts.

Second: Many companies mistakenly believe that investigations simply mean “listening fairly to both sides.”

In reality, a professional investigation process is far more complicated than most people imagine.

For example:

• How should confidentiality be maintained?

• How can retaliation against complainants or witnesses be prevented?

• How should conflicts of interest be avoided?

• How can supervisory interference in investigations be prevented?

• How can improper leading questions be avoided?

• How can companies avoid appearing to protect management or cover things up?

• How can questioning avoid causing secondary trauma?

• How should digital evidence and communication records be preserved?

These are not issues that can be handled casually by temporarily assigning a colleague to conduct a few meetings.

If procedures are incomplete, companies may face even greater legal risks regardless of whether the complaint is ultimately substantiated.

Keywords: corporate governance, investigation procedures, workplace safety, labor relations, legal liability

Third: Mature companies are beginning to value the emotional competence of investigators.

Many workplace bullying cases spiral out of control not because of legal issues, but because of emotional mishandling.

Some supervisors conduct questioning in an aggressive tone.

Some investigators rush to conclusions before fully understanding the facts.

Some mediation meetings become large-scale interrogation and pressure sessions.

As a result, the parties involved leave feeling even more traumatized.

That is why the draft guidelines emphasize that investigation committee members must complete at least three hours of professional training.

Handling workplace bullying is not merely a cold administrative procedure. It is a highly sensitive form of psychological crisis management within the workplace.

Fourth: The most overlooked issue is post-investigation remediation.

Many companies believe that once the investigation process is completed, the matter is over.

In reality, the greatest risks often emerge afterward.

For example:

• Victims may become isolated after returning to their original departments.

• Colleagues may begin labeling or stigmatizing them.

• Supervisors may retaliate privately.

• Performance evaluations may suddenly decline.

• Promotion opportunities may disappear.

Without follow-up protection measures, companies may trigger a second wave of disputes.

Therefore, the new system particularly requires responsible personnel to understand:

• How to provide psychological counseling resources

• How to arrange work adjustments

• How to prevent retaliation

• How to establish follow-up monitoring mechanisms

Because a truly effective system is not merely one that “conducts investigations,” but one that allows people to remain in the workplace safely.

Fifth: Many supervisors are not intentionally abusive—they simply do not realize they have crossed the line.

Common examples in recent years include:

• Public humiliation of subordinates

• Repeated public criticism in group chats

• Emotionally charged scolding

• Intentionally freezing employees out of assignments

• Deliberate ridicule during meetings

• Bombarding employees with messages after work hours

Many managers grew up believing:

“This is how we were all trained in the past.”

But society has changed.

The younger generation values not only salary, but also dignity and respect.

What companies truly need is not fear-based management, but leadership that fosters long-term team stability and collaboration.

Keywords: emotional management, empathy, victim protection

Sixth: Three hours of training may sound brief, but it can transform an entire corporate culture.

The greatest value of these regulations is not merely avoiding fines.

It is helping everyone understand:

• What constitutes reasonable management

• What constitutes malicious humiliation

• What constitutes abuse of power

• What psychological safety means

Many workplaces are not intentionally cruel; people were simply never taught how to treat each other properly.

The true significance of training is helping organizations recognize harms that were once normalized and overlooked.

Seventh—and most importantly—workplace bullying prevention is not only about protecting employees. It also protects managers.

Today, many supervisors operate under enormous pressure.

Without proper management training, supervisors may unknowingly cross legal boundaries during moments of emotional loss of control.

A mature system does not treat every manager as a potential offender.

Rather, it teaches everyone:

• How to manage appropriately without humiliating others

• How to set reasonable expectations without causing harm

• How to communicate rationally without intimidation

A healthy workplace should not rely on endurance and silence to maintain order.

It should rely on respect to build trust.

The truly competitive companies of the future will not be those that are “best at exploiting people.”

They will be the companies where people feel safest working.

Attorney Chen Yexin’s Reminder

The required three-hour workplace bullying prevention training for investigation committee members should include the following core topics:

1. Legal Compliance and Responsibility AwarenessUnderstanding workplace bullying prevention laws and the employer’s legal obligations.

2. Case Handling and Practical Investigation SkillsComplaint handling, communication techniques, management, and coordination skills.

3. Corrective and Remedial MeasuresLearning how to implement effective corrective actions and post-incident remedies.

4. Power Sensitivity and Victim ProtectionRecognizing workplace power imbalances and understanding victim assistance and protection mechanisms.

5. Essential Soft Skills for ManagersDeveloping empathy, emotional management, stress adjustment, leadership skills, and workplace hazard prevention awareness, while learning from recent workplace bullying cases.