Two million Brits have been bullied at work during the last six months, the TUC has claimed - and UK biz loses 18m working days a year as a result, unions claim.

A TUC survey uncovered a litany of abuse ranging from verbal to physical assaults. TUC general secretary, Brendan Barber, told the BBC: "These figures suggest that there can be few workplaces in the UK without a resident bully. But although bullying can destroy lives and have a damaging effect upon workplace morale, the overwhelming majority of employers seem unable to stop bullies in their tracks."

Further research by Unison and Acas found that "almost half of middle managers claim they have been bullied, mostly by their own bosses".

Unions are demanding that the government act to outlaw workplace bullying as a compliment to its "Dignity at Work" scheme, launched last month and described as "Europe's biggest anti-bullying campaign". ®