Half of women have been sexually harassed at work, shocking new research shows

A surprising study coming from the UK shows that more than half of women have been sexually harassed at work.

The findings are being described as the biggest study of its kind for a generation. The researchers from the Trades Union Congress and the Everyday Sexism Project polled 1,553 women in total and found that 52% of women had experienced unwanted behaviour at work, including groping, sexual advances, comments about their bodies, and inappropriate jokes. Shockingly, this figure rose to 63% among women and girls aged between 16-24. https://twitter.com/EverydaySexism/status/763271049580519424 The research showed that despite the high level of sexual misconduct taking place in working environments, there was a massive reluctance on behalf of women to report the behaviour. Around one in eight women reported that their breasts, buttocks or genitals were touched in work. The same amount said that they had had attempts to kiss them at work also. One per cent of women reported that they had been raped or seriously sexually assaulted in their workplace. The reasons for not reporting this grossly inappropriate behaviour was multifarious. One in five women suffered harassment at the hands of their boss, while four in five women neglected to report inappropriate behaviour for fear that it might negatively impact their career. https://twitter.com/EverydaySexism/status/763283962072530944 The report featured testimonials by women who experienced workplace harassment and some of the stories are awful. One woman describes how a colleague told her on her last day that “his biggest regret was that he didn’t get the chance to rape me in the store room” . Laura Bates, founder of the Everyday Sexism Project spoke to The Guardian:

“People say [sexual harassment] doesn’t go on in the workplace any more. There’s a perception that because of equality laws it’s something people aren’t putting up with. This research shows there’s a huge gap between that perception and the reality of what women are facing”.

If you have experienced this behaviour in work, contact the citizens information office  here.

Cover image via HRDailyAdvisor.