BBC Radio 5Live- sexual harassment in the workplace survey

A survey of British adults about their experiences of sexual harassment in the workplace

A third of Britons (37%) say they have experienced sexual harassment either in the workplace, or a place of study
One in five (20%) men and more than half (53%) of women say that they have experienced a form of harassment in the workplace or a place of study. Those aged 18-34 are most likely to have say they experienced sexual harassment (45% – compared to 33% of those aged 55+)
Of those who say they have been touched inappropriately in the workplace or a place of study, the majority say this was on the buttocks (59%)
More than nine in ten (95%) Britons who say that they have not personally experienced any form of harassment in the workplace or a place of study say that they have not witnessed a colleague or fellow student being harassed
Men are more likely than women (7% vs. 3%) to say that they have witnessed a colleague or fellow student being sexually harassed, but that they have not experienced a form of harassment in the workplace or a place of study themselves
Britons who have been harassed in the workplace or in a place of study, are most likely to say that they were harassed by a colleague on the same level (43%)
Men are significantly more likely than women to say they experienced harassment from a colleague on the same level (57% vs. 38%). By contrast, women are significantly more likely than men to say that they were harassed by their boss or a senior manager (30% vs. 12%)
Two thirds of Britons who have been harassed in the workplace or place of study say that they did not report this experience to anyone (67%)
Men are considerably less likely to say that they reported experiences of sexual harassment – while almost four in ten (37%) women say they reported their experiences, one in five (21%) men say they did likewise
Britons with experience of harassment at work or in their place of study are split as to whether they would be more likely to report this now than five years ago: equal proportions saying they would and would not (42% each)
Women who have experienced harassment are significantly more likely than their male counterparts to say that they are more likely to report experiences of sexual harassment now than they were five years ago (48% vs. 26%)
Almost one in ten (8%) Britons who have experienced harassment at work or in their place of study say that they left their job or place of study because of this
Women with experience of harassment are significantly more likely than men with this experience to say that they have left a job or place of study for this reason – 9% report doing so, compared to 4% of men

Date Published: 25/10/2017

Categories: Public and communities | Social

Client: BBC Radio 5 Live

Methodology

ComRes interviewed 2,031 British adults aged 18+ online between the 20th and 22nd October 2017. Data were weighted to be demographically representative of all British adults aged 18+. ComRes is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules