#SpeakingOut@Work

Overview

This national study makes a significant contribution to addressing the gaps in understanding of LGBTQ young people’s experiences with and responses to sexual harassment in the workplace.

This report, commissioned under ANROWS’s Sexual Harassment Research Program (SHRP), offers crucial insights into the workplace sexual harassment experienced by LGBTQ young people and is critical for informing workplace policy and practice specific to LGBTQ young people.

The study featured: 

• a national online survey with 1,001 LGBTQ young people aged 14–30 
• individual in-depth interviews with 40 survey participants
• a photo exercise where 8 participants shared images representing their experiences of workplace sexual harassment 
• an intersectional approach exploring how multiple social inequalities intersect in experiences of workplace sexual harassment.

Key findings

The findings highlight the prevalence of sexual harassment in the workplace experiences of LGBTQ people:

•  77% of LGBTQ young people surveyed had experienced workplace sexual harassment, often directly connected to their LGBTQ identities. 
• Most perpetrators were men who acted alone. Some LGBTQ young people experienced behaviours they felt were inappropriate, unwelcome and targeted them based on their sex, gender or sexuality yet were often unsure if their experiences counted as sexual harassment. 
• Most LGBTQ young people chose not to make a formal report and often chose instead to leave their jobs.
•  Culturally unsafe and non-inclusive workplaces where transphobia, homophobia and biphobia thrive foster workplace sexual harassment. 
• LGBTQ young people often reported receiving minimal or no training on workplace sexual harassment.

Key recommendations

Recommendations for government 

• Invest in a national public anti-sexual harassment campaign that targets the workplace, education, health and sports. 
• Improve employers’ and employees’ literacy on workplace sexual harassment, that includes training on the experiences and needs of LGBTQ young people. 

Recommendations for business owners and workplace managers 

• Ensure workplace safety and inclusion of LGBTQ young employees, including the review and evaluation of sexual harassment policies, reporting procedures and training, with a focus on the inclusion of addressing LGBTQ employees’ experiences and needs. 

Recommendations for education sectors – Schools, universities, professional training institutions 

• Review and address gaps in sexual harassment policies, reporting procedures and training across all school and post-school education sectors. 
• Include anti-sexual harassment education through the Respectful Relationships Education in Schools (RREiS) program from primary through to secondary schools.