New survey: 71.4 per cent of respondents experienced one form of harassment and violence at work

A new national survey conducted in part by Western University, says prevention is urgently needed to curb harassment and violence in the Canadian workplace.

The joint study, "Respect at Work: Harassment and Violence in Canadian Workplaces," released Wednesday shows 71.4 per cent of respondents experienced at least one form of harassment and violence or sexual harassment two years prior to the survey.

“This report reaffirms what we’ve been hearing from workers for years,” said Bea Bruske, from the Canadian Labour congress.

According to Sandy Welsh, one of the lead researchers, 88 per cent of the recipients are union members working in education, healthcare and social services.

“Members of the LGBTQ2+ community, indigenous workers, those living with disabilities and some racialized workers are more likely to experience all forms of harassment and violence including sexual harassment compared to other workers," said Welsh.

Their research shows the pandemic made matters worse for victims as the severity and frequency of harassment increased and barriers to reporting it did as well.

Some of the other highlights the report also found:

• 65 per cent of respondents experienced at least one behaviour or practice of harassment or violence
• 43.9 per cent respondents experienced at least one behaviour or practice of sexual harassment and violence
• 73 per cent of gender-diverse respondents experienced this harassment and violence compared to those identifying as women (46 per cent) and men (38 per cent)
• 26.5 per cent of respondents surveyed experienced at least one form of work related online harassment
• 23 per cent of respondents were stalked
• 4 per cent were sexually assaulted
• 50 per cent were physically intimidated
• 16 per cent were physically assaulted resulting in serious injury

Researchers involved in the report hope their findings will soon bring forth change.

“It gives us a very strong evidence base that we can now use to lobby governments for legislative improvements and negotiate with employers for stronger workplace protections,” said Bruske.

The study consisted of an online survey that ran from Oct., 2020 to April 21, 2021 with almost 4,900 respondents and one-on-one interviews with 34 participants.

The study was a partnership between Western University as well as researchers from the University of Toronto, and the Canadian Labour Congress.