BOSSES at the region’s ambulance service take a “zero tolerance” approach to bullying it was claimed today after a union raised concerns.

The GMB union said it is planning a survey of staff after “widespread” reports from members of bullying by managers at the East of England Ambulance Service Trust.

But the trust has hit back at the claims stating they have a “zero tolerance” approach to bullying.

Tony Hughes, GMB organiser said, “GMB members have recently reported an increase of bullying by managers at the trust. With this survey GMB hopes to discover the scope of any problems and will then share the results with Andrew Morgan interim CEO in the hope that he will engage with GMB to deal with any adverse finding.”

A spokeswoman for the ambulance service said: “Our staff are our greatest asset and we have a zero tolerance approach to bullying.

“This year we launched a Respect and Dignity campaign to promote such values among all staff.

“Not only is the rate of reported bullying monitored by the NHS through staff survey results, we have clear, robust processes in place to ensure staff can raise any allegations safely and trust that they will be thoroughly investigated.

“Unfortunately however we have not been made aware of the allegations by the GMB and would therefore urge the union to raise them through the correct channels so they can be properly investigated for the benefit of all our employees.”