Workplace Sexual Harassment “Extraordinary”
30 October 2012 at 10:59 am
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Workplaces are failing to address sexual harassment a new report has found. Photo: wespeaknews.com |
Sexual harassment is not only widespread in Australian workplaces, but progress in addressing it has stalled, according to a new report.
Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Elizabeth Broderick has released Working without fear: Results of the sexual harassment national telephone survey 2012 that found that approximately one in five people aged 15 years and older were sexually harassed in the workplace in the past five years.
Broderick describes the figures as ‘extraordinary’.
The research shows that one in four women (25%) and one in six men (16%) have been sexually harassed in the workplace in the past five years. If a person's entire lifetime is considered, the gender gap is even more profound with a third of women (33%) and less than one in ten men (9%) experiencing sexual harassment.
Targets of sexual harassment are most likely to be women under 40 and harassers are most likely to be male co-workers. Women are at least five times more likely than men to have been harassed by a boss or employer. Men harassing women accounts for more than half of all sexual harassment, while male harassment of men accounts for nearly a quarter.
Commissioner Broderick said that one of the most encouraging parts of the research concerned the role of bystanders – people who witnessed or later became aware of sexual harassment.
"Fifty-one per cent of people who were bystanders took some action to prevent or reduce the harm of the sexual harassment they were aware of," she said. "Bystanders have an extremely important role to play in confronting and combating sexual harassment."
Commissioner Broderick said that bystanders can help to prevent and reduce the harm of sexual harassment and ensure safe work environments for themselves and their colleagues, but they needed to be supported and empowered, which would mean a huge shift in organisational culture.
"Eradicating sexual harassment from our workplaces will require leadership and a genuine commitment from everyone – government, employers, employer associations, unions and employees."
The study says more work needs to be done on identifying where the problems are in specific employment areas and industries.
The Commission says the survey provides the only national and trend data on sexual harassment in Australian workplaces and is available online.
I sat in a job interview a couple of months ago where they not only asked me whether I was married but they asked me how I handle ‘lust’ in the office.
I withdrew my application but was told by one friend that I should’ve taken the job they offered because I’d been out of work for several months!!! There’s an attitude that you can’t speak up, otherwise your job will be in danger. I told my friend that I’d been in situations where I’d been sexually harassed at work before and it was a stressful situation and she at least had a better understanding.
There is definitely a ‘boys club’ in many corporate enviroments. There is a pervasive belief that women are inferior to men in many corners that unfortunately I don’t think will go away anytime soon. It’s a deep, ingrainted discrimination.
Yes, this phenomenon is not only appeared in Austrlian place but all over the world. The ladies should take care of themselves and should say”NO”if they met this action.
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