More than half of women experience sexual harassment at work

More than half of women in the UK say they have experienced sexual harassment in the workplace, according to one of the most extensive pieces of research on the topic in Europe.

The Trade Union Congress (TUC) in collaboration with the Everyday Sexism Project found that 52% of women and 63% of women aged between 18 to 24 years old experienced sexism at work.

The survey, carried out by YouGov on behalf of TUC and the Everyday Sexism Project, revealed that 32% of women were subject to unwelcome jokes of a sexual nature while at work.

About 28% were the subject of comments of a sexual nature about their body or clothes and 23% of women have experienced unwanted touching, such as a hand on the knee or lower back at work.

A fifth of women experienced unwanted verbal sexual advances at work and around one in eight women experienced unwanted sexual touching or attempts to kiss them at work.

TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said: “How many times do we still hear that sexual harassment in the workplace is just a bit of banter? … It has no place in a modern workplace, or in wider society.

“Employers must be clear they have a zero tolerance attitude to sexual harassment and treat any complaint seriously. It’s a scandal that so few women feel their bosses are dealing with the issue properly. Anyone worried about inappropriate behaviour at work should join a union to make sure they are protected and respected at work.”

About 79% women who said they experienced sexual harassment at work did not tell their employer about what was happening. In the survey 88% of women said the perpetrator was male, and 17% women reported that it was their manager, or someone with direct authority.

Dr Jane Pilger, a researcher and social policy adviser to European and international organisations, said it was one of the biggest surveys carried in Europe on women’s experiences of sexual harassment at work.

“The survey results shows the enormity of this issue which is so often invisible and under-reported – it points to the need for changes in attitudes towards women and for comprehensive workplace policies to prevent and respond to sexual harassment.”