#Fuoridallatrappola

25 November

One in four women suffers harassment at work. Verbal violence and bullying the most widespread

The data in the research conducted by WeWorld and Ipsos: 60 per cent of workers are aware of harassment in their workplace.

by Letizia Giangualano

24 November 2024

5' min read

Key points

WeWorld survey: 60 per cent of respondents know about incidents of harassment at work
A widespread vulnerability in the world of work
verbal violence and bullying the most common incidents
The silence of the sufferer and the consequences
Actions to be taken

5' min read

Verbal violence, physical violence, mobbing, stalking, abuse of power: harassment at work is a complex phenomenon, in which various forms of discrimination are intertwined, triggered in many cases by an asymmetric power dynamic. For this reason, it tends to affect more frequently those who occupy hierarchically inferior positions; especially newly recruited, young or less experienced people. But if subordination is a vulnerability factor, gender also matters: women are in fact more exposed to specific forms of violence at work, particularly those of a sexual nature, but not only.

"We will not stay in our place. For the right to a job free from harassment and violence", is the research carried out by WeWorld and Ipsos to investigate a phenomenon that is still too often normalised and considered acceptable, especially, as the report states, "in contexts characterised by strong hierarchies and gender stereotypes, and profit-oriented".

WeWorld survey: 60% of respondents know about incidents of harassment at work

The survey conducted in September 2024 on a sample of 1,100 male and female workers, aged between 20 and 64, representative for age, gender and geographical area of residence, shows that 60 per cent of male and female workers are aware of incidents of harassment in their workplace. More than 2 in 5 (42%) have witnessed and/or experienced violence in their workplace; 1 in 5 (22%) have experienced violence in the workplace at least once in their life, and disaggregating the data, among women the number rises to more than 1 in 4 (28%).

The perpetrators of violence at work are mainly male bosses (42%) or male colleagues (35%), followed at a distance by female colleagues (22%) and female bosses (13%). One in two women (50%) of those who have experienced violence at work point to the male boss as the perpetrator.

A widespread vulnerability in the world of work

"Harassment at work is one of the many manifestations of patriarchy, a system that harms not only women, but also men. In recent decades, the right to safe and decent working conditions has been undermined by policies that have reduced trade union power, incentivised downsizing and encouraged relocation, creating a widespread vulnerability that pushes many people to accept difficult working conditions, putting their rights on the back burner and suffering mistreatment, discrimination and harassment," commented Martina Albini, coordinator of WeWorld's study centre. "Never before has it been so crucial to openly question the dynamics of prevarication at the root of these abuses and to work to build safe and respectful working environments for all: a fundamental human right."

verbal violence and bullying the most common incidents

But what are the reported incidents of violence? According to the sample surveyed, the most common form of violence is verbal violence (56%), in second place is bullying (53%) and in third place, detached, is abuse of power (37%). Physical violence (10%), stalking (6%) and online violence (2%) close the ranking. sexual harassment is perceived as the most serious form of violence by 52% of the sample, followed in second place by bullying (37%) and physical violence (34%). The general perception is that women suffer more from almost all forms of violence than men, with the exception of physical violence (32% of the sample think men suffer it more, compared to 25% who think women suffer it more) and bullying (20% vs. 17%).

Then there is the phenomenon of so-called 'microaggressions': more than 1 in 4 women have experienced inappropriate looks (27%) or advances (29%) in the workplace. The main perpetrators of micro-aggressions are colleagues (38%) and male bosses (37%), followed at a considerable distance by male customers (14%) and female colleagues (12%).

The silence of those who suffer and the consequences

How do people react to these incidents of harassment? The report also collects 140 direct and anonymous testimonies, which also help to analyse this aspect and counteract the secondary victimisation that too often shifts the axis of blame according to how and how much the victims reacted to the abuse. The truth is that people react in different ways, also depending on the environment in which they work or the role they occupy. The testimonies reveal three main scenarios: some continue to work without telling what they have experienced, some confide in or denounce, but without the company taking any action, and some find support from the company, which takes action regarding the incident. The first two situations are the most common. In most cases, those who suffer abuse or violence do not talk about it with anyone. This happens for various reasons: the victim may feel deeply hurt, blocked or inadequate, and sometimes co-responsible for the incident. In other cases, it is the fear of the consequences that holds them back: one of the main reasons is the fear of losing one's job: this sentiment is shared by 59% of the sample, and rises to 62% among women (65% among female workers). 53% express fear of retaliation from the perpetrator, while 41% think that denouncing would be useless. At other times, one has the feeling that reporting the incident would not lead to any consequences for the perpetrator of the violence; one therefore feels powerless.

This leads to dismissals as a result of the abuse suffered: according to the WeWorld-Ipsos survey, 1 in 4 (25%) have done so. In these cases, two fundamental rights collide: the right to work and the right to freedom from violence and harassment. There is also the equally serious case of those who are dismissed as a result of violence in the workplace: 1 in 7 (14%).

Actions to be taken

To counteract the phenomenon, male and female workers indicate as the most effective initiatives the establishment of sanctions for violent behaviour (37%) or the possibility to report incidents of violence via anonymous reporting lines (32%). One in 4 (25%) believe that companies should offer access to psychological counselling services for those who have witnessed and/or experienced violence in the workplace. Only 12% of the sample identified as a priority the organisation of workshops to raise awareness among the corporate population on the various types of gender-based violence. Yet perhaps it is precisely from the culture that we should start to fight a phenomenon that is made strong by the very resistance to recognise it, fight it, overcome it.

Italy was the second country in Europe, after Finland, to adopt Convention No. 190 on the Elimination of Violence and Harassment in the World of Work in 2021, a fundamental step for the respect of human rights in the workplace. Article 1 of the Convention unequivocally explains: 'The term "violence and harassment" in the world of work means a set of unacceptable practices and conduct, or the threat of their occurrence, whether on a single occasion or repeatedly, which is intended to, causes or is likely to result in physical, psychological, sexual or economic harm, and includes gender-based violence and harassment'. Yet between prevention, recognition, monitoring and intervention, there still seem to be too many flaws in a system in which no one, indeed no one, really feels safe.