A super depressing new study out of the UK has found that sexual harassment in the workplace is alive and bloody thriving.
The study, conducted by TUC and the Everyday Sexism project, spoke to over 1500 women and found that over half of them (52%) had been sexually harassed at work (which btw can include anything from jokes about your sex life to inappropriate hugging, suggestive remarks, displaying porn in the office or even requests / demands for sexual favours).
- Over a third (35%) of women had heard comments of a sexual nature being made about other women.
- Just under a third (32%) had been subject to unwelcome jokes of a sexual nature.
- Over a quarter (28%) had been subject to comments of a sexual nature about their body or clothes.
- One in five women had experienced unwanted sexual advances.
- One in ten women had experienced unwanted sexual touching or attempts to kiss them.
In most cases (90%) the perpetrator was male (shocking) and either a colleague (7%) or a direct manager (17%). So just to put that in perspective, almost 1 in 5 women in the survey had been sexually harassed by their manager. Cool.
As is all too familiar with these stories, the majority of incidences went unreported (79%). Reasons for this included women being afraid it would affect either their relationships at work (28%) or their career prospects (15%), or that they would either not be believed (24%), or worse, blamed (8%).
Everyday Sexism have been retweeting stories of sexism and work all day in response to the report being published, some of which you can read below.
@EverydaySexism bending to get floor cleaner, “joked” at by boss standing at sink, “while you’re down there…” #harassedatwork
— Dr Nicola Moffat (@NicolaMoffat) August 10, 2016
@EverydaySexism @guardian when I wa 16 and worked in a cafe a man older than my Dad repeatedly asked me to go out with him.
— Kathryn Black (@kathrynblack07) August 10, 2016
A man at work once groped my bum. Colleagues told me to not to take it seriously. #HarassedAtWork @EverydaySexism
— Sassy (@cupventure) August 10, 2016
@EverydaySexism at a part time job where male workers would openly discuss “physical attributes” of female workers #HarassedAtWork
— tea no sugar (@teagreens111) August 10, 2016
Gross.
One important thing – among the many important things – that the report makes note of is that sexual harassment, like other types of violence against women, is “inextricably” linked to power.
Either way, if you are experiencing sexual harassment, particularly from someone in a position of power, it is absolutely not okay and nor is it your fault.
