According to Victoria Police, more than 100 officers from across the state have been forced to take stress leave – but the Police Association says the figure is 500. Toxic work environments are believed to have contributed to several police suicides, including one in the past year.

Several major law firms, including Maurice Blackburn, are preparing civil action against the force, while Worksafe Victoria approached the police union last week to discuss claims of systematic bullying and intimidation.

Police Association secretary Ron Iddles accused Victoria Police of giving "lip service" to the problem, with most internal investigations conducted by email and rarely resulting in disciplinary action.

Over the past financial year, just one bullying claim was substantiated from 31 complaints received. Detective Senior Sergeant Iddles said the extent of the problem had been dramatically understated and accused the force of sweeping complaints under the carpet.

"It's not a proper investigation, it's a system whereby emails are sent to members, who are asked, 'have you been bullied?' And then an email is sent to the alleged perpetrator. Then they come back and say it's not substantiated and that's what's so frustrating for our members,"  Mr Iddles said.

He said the union would consider funding a civil court action against Victoria Police, which he said was "vicariously liable" for the conduct of its officers.

"If a group of members came to us and collectively wanted it done and we thought it was the best way to represent members then, yeah," he said.

Mr Iddles has warned the force that at least 10 stations across Victoria required immediate action, but he refused to discuss specific cases.

Acting Deputy Commissioner Jack Blayney denied there was a cultural problem within the force and said standard workplace conflict was often interpreted as bullying.

"Our highest priority in our organisation is the safety and wellbeing of our people, it's our number-one priority, we've got a no-harm approach to safety," he said.

"We understand conflict takes place in our workplaces and that is something we don't want to happen, but we understand conflict takes place everywhere, it takes place in the community and it takes place in every organisation no matter how big or small."

Fairfax Media can reveal that seven members from Altona North station have lodged complaints with Victoria Police, the Police Association and the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission about alleged sustained bullying by a senior officer.

One of the alleged victims said the work environment at the station, which has one of the highest proportions of female officers in the state, deteriorated dramatically after the arrival of the senior officer.

"It became very toxic, abusive, insulting, discriminatory, judgmental and consistent bullying and systematic victimisation of staff became the norm," the officer said.

He said an officer who served in Afghanistan with the Army Reserve was ridiculed as a "bludger" and a "toy soldier", while a female officer was told she was "nothing but a c--t-stable and that's all you will ever be".

He said female members on maternity leave were "ridiculed" during a speech at a Christmas function and another officer was described as a "f--kwit" during a management meeting.

He claimed the senior officer started a campaign to discredit a female officer on leave after she broke her neck in a crash in a police car, telling other officers she was a "bludger".

One of the officers, in his 20s, left the force after only two years and his former colleagues consider him a suicide risk.

"He was so badly bullied that he would throw up daily, break down in tears and walk around shaking in fear," a former colleague said.

One of the seven officers said their complaint was "whitewashed" by the force and most were not contacted about their complaint. But a letter was sent to the officers stating the matter was "thoroughly investigated" and the claims were not substantiated.

Other stations affected are believed to include Fawkner, Wangaratta, Gisborne and the Mounted Branch in South Melbourne.

Tori's story: 'It was bloody traumatic'

Working at the Victoria Police Mounted Branch was supposed to be Tori Weir's dream job, but now she can't drive past the place without feeling sick to her stomach.

The 32-year-old grew up with horses on a farm at Gisborne and joined the stables of Olympian equestrian Mary Hanna before she started working at the Victoria Police stables in Attwood in 2008.

"I was really excited about it. I went there hoping I have the expertise to contribute to this team, because these guys are going to be so professional," Ms Weir said.

But what she said she found was a "cesspool" of bullying, coupled with lack of horsemanship, in the 35-member squad, which that isolated those who weren't part of the "in" club.

Ms Weir said the bullying escalated to a physical assault in which she was grabbed and shaken by another officer during an argument about transporting horses.

"I got to the point where I was hoping I would have a bad car accident on the way to work so I didn't have to go in there. The only thing that kept me going back to work was my love of the horses and my concern for their wellbeing," she said.

She said her complaints of bullying were ignored and she left Victoria Police in January, after signing a confidentiality agreement.

"It was bloody traumatic. At the end of the day Victorian public need to realise this is going on," she said.

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