Gender-Based Violence in the Workplace

Sexual harassment, stalking, coercion, physical assault: these are just a few examples of gender-based violence in the workplace. Gender-based violence (GBV) can be any act of violence that results or is likely to result in physical, sexual, or psychological harm or suffering to girls and women. GBV may also include domestic violence that impacts survivors’ professional lives, such as assaults that occur within or on the commute to and from the workplace.

A 2019 Bureau of Labor study found that women are three times more likely to experience workplace homicide, with the same year reporting 26,390 nonfatal workplace assaults and intentional injuries towards women. Socioeconomic status, ethnicity, religion, age, immigrant status, race, and sexuality all intersect in women’s identities to influence where and how they experience GBV. For many women, the combination of multiple identities places them at higher risk for suffering this form of workplace violence.

Economic insecurity and unstable employment also greatly increase the likelihood of GBV. Part-time, temporary, and low-wage workers (of which women comprise the majority) are less likely to report GBV out of fear of losing their jobs, and the informal structure of these workplaces often presents opportunities that perpetrators can take advantage of. These workplaces often lack the oversight, accountability, or clear procedures that ensure a safe environment. Our study revealed that 42% of full-time working women in Allen county are making $25,000 or less annually, putting them in the prime economic bracket to experience gender-based workplace violence.

Even when workplaces have policies regarding harassment and assault, employees may not even be aware that they are in place or have not received proper training on policy requirements. For example, while a George Washington University Law School study estimates that 50-80% of women experience some form of harassment at work, only 25% talk about the assault, and only 5% formally file complaints. Many survivors fear they will lose their jobs, that they will not be believed, or that confronting their assailants will only instigate further abuse. These fears are not unfounded: studies and surveys reveal that 25% of workplace rape victims lose their job within a year of the assault. We know from our research in Allen County that 42% of women who experienced a crime did not file an official report. Policies are only beneficial when they are not only clearly communicated and effectively enacted, but when organizational culture is designed to place belief and trust in employees.

Reports of gender-based violence in the workplace underscore the importance of high-quality working conditions, job security and labor rights, and legal protection for voicing concerns about workplace environments. Current legal policies are not sufficient in addressing the full depth and range of gender-based violence in workplaces. In Indiana, the state’s civil rights code governs businesses with 14 to six employees but leaves loopholes regarding sexual assault cases. Employers with five or fewer are not bound by any law at all. For example, in Indiana, a woman working at a place of employment with less than 15 employees could be required to obtain her employer’s permission to file a harassment suit. This means that a woman could potentially be mandated to obtain her assailant's permission to seek legal ramifications for the workplace violence they enacted.

We know from our research that 75% of working-age women in Allen County are in the workforce. What can we do to help empower them?

• Believe survivors. Let’s increase tolerance to remove the stigma and secrecy regarding harassment at work. Make sure your workplace has expressly communicated the process for reporting harassment.

• Champion ongoing diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility training in your workplace.

• Educate yourself on Indiana’s policy for employer-filed workplace violence restraining orders.

• Advocate: learn about the legislation Women4Change is advocating for to improve the reporting process and protections for survivors.

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