There are two types of workplace sexual harassment: quid pro quo and hostile work environment.
Quid pro quo is any form of sexual harassment that involves exchanging sexual activity in exchange for a favor / benefit or preventing a threat. Absolute harassment often occurs between people with different levels of authority or authority, such as a supervisor or interviewer with employees or secondary applicants
Some examples of sexual harassment are the solicitation of sexual favors in exchange for:
Promotion
Salary or Salary Increase
Easier or Fewer Job Assignments
Unemployment Prevention
Employment Acceptance on the other hand, a hostile work environment is any form of repetitive behavior that creates a threatening work environment for the victim. The hostile work environment of sexual harassment includes all kinds of situations that make a person feel emotionally hopeless at work. It also covers various cases of discrimination in employment on the basis of sexual orientation and / or gender.
Some examples of sexual harassment in a hostile work environment include:
Sexual comments and jokes
Sharing inappropriate content with sexual innuendos
Sexual approaches or unwanted physical behavior such as groping
Improper touching
Sexual assault or sexual assault or Shocking sexual harassment statistics at work
Workplace Sexual Harassment Statistics
1. 63% of women did not complain and 79% of men kept the problems to themselves.
In 2017, the BBC interviewed 2,000 respondents and found that most victims of sexual harassment did not report violence. Whether it was because of fear of reprisal or intimidation as a joke, more than half of the victims remained silent. Encourage victims to stand up by establishing clear definitions of sexual harassment in the workplace through regular training and updating sexual harassment guidelines to include specific steps to report harassment.
2. 3 out of 4 incidents of sexual harassment in the workplace go unreported.
Another survey shows that 75% of cases of sexual harassment in the workplace go unreported. These statistics show that organizations need to do a better job of cultivating a culture to show that they are encouraged to file complaints of sexual harassment. In addition to creating a strict anti-harassment policy, regular harassment training is also required and immediate action is needed on allegations of harassment.
3. 55% of victims experience retaliation after speaking out or making a claim.
A report published by the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in 2020 showed that 55.8% of complaints received in 2020 were retaliated after a sexual harassment incident was reported. Revenge discourages victim reporting and promotes a toxic work culture. It comes in many forms, including relegation, exclusion from team activity, and adverse relocation.
4. More than one third of women have experienced sexual harassment in the workplace.
The 2018 Stop Street Harassment survey found that 81% of women and 43% of men had been bullied during their lifetime. Whether it is an assault or an offensive remark that makes someone uncomfortable, sexual harassment in the workplace should not be tolerated. Sexual harassment has a lasting effect on victims and affects their routines, health and mental state. It is important to educate your employees about what is right and wrong, even if it is a joke.
5. 39% of employees are not sure that their problems will be solved and 46% fear retaliation.
Fears that the problem will not be resolved and revenge are only two reasons why victims tend to take the harassment and emotional consequences for themselves rather than confront their harassers. Having a specific sexual harassment policy and timely compliance with this policy when reporting is important to demonstrate that the organization will protect harassment from retaliation. Protect your employees’ trust in your organization, take complaints seriously and create a safe space for everyone to speak up.
6. According to victims who report being harassed, 95% of men are not punished.
According to women surveyed by ABC and the Washington Post, 95% of bullies succeed. This is an extremely worrying number. This shows that the corporate culture of most companies is geared towards protecting criminals more than victims. Not punishing the offender is punishing the offender again and preventing the victim from reappearing in the future.
7. Women are 54 percent more likely to be harassed.
From sexual harassment to sexual exploitation, women are more than twice as likely to be harassed. Allegations of sexual harassment by women need to be taken seriously and investigated immediately. In addition, it is necessary to strengthen efforts to prevent sexual harassment to prevent further negative effects on female employees and increase job satisfaction.
8. 32% of employees did not know that jokes could be considered sexual harassment.
Even if sexual advances are unintentional, they can still cause discomfort for the stalker, liability for your company, and a tarnished file of an unsuspected criminal. Protect your employees from avoidable demands and unnecessary emotional stress by providing regular training on proper behavior in the workplace.
9. Sexual harassment in the workplace costs an average of $ 2.6 billion in lost productivity, or $ 1,053 per victim.
In addition to the emotional distress of all involved, including witnesses, investigators, victims, sexual harassment in the workplace.
10. 72% of victims were harassed by an older person at work.
Harassment by a prominent or powerful person can be intimidating given the threat of retaliation and the policy of the office concerned. Blaming a stronger character can be scarier because they seem to have more “allies” in your environment than you, which can lead to unreported harassment. Regular training, clear policies and a strong hand against sexual harassment are needed to encourage victims to appear regardless of the perpetrator.
11. 68% of LGBT people experience bullying in the workplace.
A 2019 TUC survey found that 68% of LGBTQ employees have experienced sexual harassment at work and 12% said they had been sexually assaulted at work. Unfortunately, prejudice against the LGBTQ community is a factor that means that two thirds of society never report harassment. According to the TUC, the misunderstanding and oversexualization of LGBTQ identities can be some of the causes of bullying.
12. Of the victims of sexual assault or abuse, 31% then felt anxious or depressed.
The severe emotional distress of victims of sexual harassment suggests that all organizations should consider including mental health benefits in their corporate health care plans. These effects will have long-term effects on victims and some may suffer more severe psychological trauma such as depression or anxiety. To help them recover, it is important to describe the type of support you provide to victims in the organization’s guidelines.
13. 37% of harassed women said that harassment negatively affected their career progression.
In addition to the lasting emotional harm they may suffer, victims are more likely to arrive late for important appointments, have difficulty communicating with colleagues, suffer from absenteeism and even miss mentoring opportunities. Balancing career opportunities and fear of sexual harassment makes it hard to overthink productivity which will end up affecting the career of the victim.
14. 98% of US organizations have a sexual harassment policy.
Although this seems to be one of the more encouraging statistics. Yet sexual harassment remains a major problem in most workplaces. The HBR has investigated this issue and found that sexual harassment is a problem that cannot be solved by politics alone because it is inherent in culture. Regular training Efforts by everyone involved in the organization and enforceable policies are needed to protect your employees from sexual harassment.
15. The media industry claims the majority of cases of sexual harassment at work.
This report shows that the media industry is the worst performer when it comes to preventing sexual harassment, followed by technology and counseling. Media includes public relations/advertising, video and audio production and broadcast, entertainment, art/design, publishing, and other communications. This may be due to the opportunistic nature of art and the sad fact that those in power often manage art in an opportunistic way for them.
16. 7 out of 10 people believe that their company does not take sexual harassment seriously.
A culture of non-harassment is not something you can name and everyone will immediately believe. It should be developed through regular training, improved and appropriate policies and a general approach to allegations of sexual harassment. If employees still feel that their organization does not take sexual harassment seriously, the work culture should be reconsidered.