With the development of digital media, the boundary between the working hours and leisure time of public employees is blurred, as they can be contacted outside of working hours through social media, SMS, and email. According to a survey conducted by the News Magazine Danske Kommuner, more citizens are choosing to take advantage of this opportunity in situations where they feel they have been treated unfairly.

The results of the survey showed that in the period from 2016 to 2019, four out of 10 municipalities experienced an increase in cases of digital harassment against their employees. The other municipalities experienced no  change, meaning that no municipalities during this period experienced fewer cases of digital harassment in the workplace.

The survey revealed that only 21 out of the 74 participating municipalities, corresponding to 28 percent, had implemented initiatives to prevent work-related digital harassment. Furthermore, 39 municipalities, corresponding to 53 percent, had established concrete guidelines for handling online harassment. To prevent digital harassment, it requires that the municipalities have a clear strategy and guidelines for managing digital harassment in the workplace.

Work-related digital harassment in the country's schools

In the country's schools, digital communication has become widespread, primarily through the platform Aula and to a lesser extent via emails, while schools often maintain a presence on Facebook and possibly LinkedIn, which usually functions smoothly, but there is a risk that teachers and other staff at the schools receive unpleasant messages.

In 2019, another survey revealed that 29 percent of school leaders had been subjected to instances of digital harassment in the workplace from parents, children, and other citizens in the past 12 months. Similarly, teachers have been subjected to digital harassment, although the number was not as high compared to school leaders.

New survey of digital harassment in the workplace

Due to the results of the survey, senior researcher and adjunct lecturer at Aarhus University, Lars Peter Sønderbo Andersen, has decided to investigate the extent of digital harassment in schools today, as there has not yet been a comprehensive study that can provide insight into the extent to which teachers are actually exposed to work-related digital harassment.

The upcoming survey will not solely focus on work-related digital harassment in the school sector but will also include several different industries. The project, titled “Digital harassment at work”, is being conducted in collaboration with Occupational Medicine, Regional Hospital Gødstrup, and Odense University Hospital and is supported by the Working Environment Research Fund. The project is expected to be completed in 2026 with the aim of developing guidelines in collaboration with various professional organizations.