Is it actually secure for women and the LGBTQI+ community in workplaces?
Trigger warning: this article mentions topics such as sexual harassment that may be disturbing and/or triggering.
Sexual harassment is a major problem in workplaces, especially towards women and people within the LGBTQI+ community. These harassments can happen in many forms, either physically or verbally, such as by asking for sexual favors in exchange for promotion, a raise, or preventing job loss. 81 percent of women have experienced sexual harassment at least once throughout their lives, while 38 percent of them faced this issue in the workplace.
Furthermore, 68 percent of LGBTQI+ people have been sexually assaulted and/or have been bullied in the workplace. 19 percent of them face discrimination at work, such as hearing homophobic ‘jokes’ or being told to dress in a more feminine or masculine manner. 46 percent of the LGBTQI+ people hide their sexual orientation and/or gender identity at work in order to avoidthis form of discrimination. Especially genderqueer people, such as transgender and non-binary individuals, undergo this violation of rights since legal protection for them is weak due to the fact that the legal framework of the EU is firmly grounded in a binary conception of sex and the medicalised picture of trans populations.
Consequently, these incidents lead to anxiety, depression, sleeping disorders, lowered self-esteem, and sexual dysfunction.
Moreover, despite the high numbers of sexual harassment, out of all these incidents, only 25 percent are reported. The crucial reasons for this figure are fear, lack of appropriate procedures, and lack of awareness of these procedures. In many cultures, the victims of sexual harassment are stigmatised as being ‘too emotional’ and are being blamed instead of the harassers. The lack of representation of bullying and harassment towards the LGBTQI+ population in media hinders the process of reporting said incidents. 95 percent of the harassers are unpunished.
In conclusion, even though some measures have been taken, women and queer people still face sexual harassment because of the lack of awareness on sexual harassment issues.
Anar Mammadov
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