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Fawcett Society supports employers to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace

A new report from leading gender equality organisations led by the Fawcett Society, shines a light on sexual harassment in UK workplaces and equips employers to understand and tackle the root causes of this form of abuse. Despite the fact that sexual harassment in the workplace has been unlawful for decades, it’s clear that too many women experience it at work and more must be done to protect them. We know that harassment has not stopped due to the pandemic – it has simply moved online and into workers’ homes.

The report produced by the Fawcett Society in partnership with Chwarae Teg, Women’s Resource and Development Agency, Close the Gap and supported by TIME’S UP UK and Rosa shows that:

• At least 40% of women experience sexual harassment during the course of their career
• 45% of women in a recent survey reported experiencing harassment online through sexual messages, cyber harassment and sexual calls.
• Almost a quarter of women who had been sexually harassed said the harassment had increased or escalated since the start of the pandemic while they were working from home
• Almost seven in ten (68%) disabled women reported being sexually harassed at work, compared to 52% of women in general
• Ethnic minority workers (women and men) reported higher rates (32%) of sexual harassment than white workers (28%) over the last 12 months
• A poll of LGBT workers found that 68% had experienced some form of harassment in the workplace