77% Of Young LGBTQ People Report Workplace Sexual Harassment
Image: Image: Margo Fink/Star Observer
Research from Australia’s National Research Organisation for Women’s Safety (ANROWS) has shed new light on the workplace sexual harassment faced by LGBTQ+ young people.
The report drew from over 1000 participants aged 14 to 30, and found that 77% had experienced workplace sexual harassment, including inappropriate comments, intrusive questions, and jokes about their identities. Comments were often connected to their sexuality or gender, and were shaped by harmful, queerphobic stereotypes.
Startlingly, 30% of respondents reported perpetrators threatening them with sexual violence as a means of “fixing” their gender or sexual orientation. Most of the perpetrators were male colleagues, and were typically older than the person they harassed. Women and those assigned female at birth were overwhelmingly the targets of this sort of violence.
Many workers, especially those in hospitality, felt as though it was necessary to tolerate sexual harassment from clients or customers in order to meet “professional” expectations, and because they feared losing tips or employment.
“Workplace harassment toward LGBTQA+ people —particularly transgender individuals and LGBTQA+ people of colour—is disproportionately high due to systemic bias, cultural stigma, and a lack of genuine accountability in workplaces.” said Neha Madhok, Democracy In Colour co-founder and lead consultant at Neha Madhok Consulting. “For transgender people of colour, the risk of harassment is amplified by structural inequities that view them as ‘other’ or fail to take their unique experiences into account. This leads to isolation and fewer avenues for recourse when harassment or discrimination occurs.”
Young LGBTQ people less like to receive training or report
Although 17% of respondents said they hadn’t experienced workplace sexual harassment, they did disclose behaviour to researchers that qualified as harassment. Young LGBTQ people found it difficult to identify what counted as harassment, and didn’t have a frame of reference for what was normal.
Most chose not to make a formal complaint, having limited awareness of workplace harassment policies and reporting pathways. Some preferred to leave their jobs, as making a report would require them to come out in a potentially unsafe environment.
“It is saddening though not surprising to see that many young LGBTQ+ people are experiencing sexual harassment in the workplace and not reporting it,” said Prabha Nandagopal, lawyer and founder of SafeSpace@elevate, Australia’s first independent reporting and support service. “Anonymous reporting tools are proven to be far more effective in enabling employees to feel they can actually share their experiences. With more information and data, employees are then better positioned to take action.”
Researchers also found that LGBTQ young people received little to no workplace sexual harassment training, and those that did said it was a “tick-the-box” exercise with an unhelpful cisheteronormative focus.
Recommendations included the implementation of comprehensive, inclusive training and the creation of policies that foster respectful and safe environments.
You are not alone. If you or someone you know has experienced sexual or family violence and needs support, you can contact:
- 1800RESPECT: 1800 737 732
- Lifeline: 13 11 14
- LGBTQ+ Rainbow Sexual, Domestic & Family Violence Service Help Line: 1800 385 578
- NSW Mental Health Access Line: 1800 011 511
- Alan Beyond Blue: 1300 224 636
- Suicide Call Back Service: 1300 659 467
- Mensline 1300789978
- Alcohol and Drug Information Service: 1800 250 015
- QLife (3pm to midnight): 1800 184 527
- 13YARN (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander line) – 13 92 76
