583 million people around the globe encounter psychological abuse at work: reveals Survey

• Image Credit: Representational Image

• Dec 6, 2022 | Kabir Chakraborty

Women were shown to be more likely to encounter psychological aggression and harassment than men were. However, men were more frequently the victims of psychological abuse.

Digital Desk: Surprisingly, the most
common form of abuse reported in workplaces is psychological abuse rather than
sexual harassment, according to a ground-breaking survey on people's
experiences with violence and harassment at work.

According to a survey conducted jointly by the
International Labor Organization (ILO), Lloyd's Register Foundation (LRF), and
Gallup, 17.9% of workers have suffered psychological harassment and abuse at
work. This indicates that abuse in the form of insults, threats, bullying, or
intimidation has been experienced by 583 million people worldwide.

On the other hand, one in fifteen, or 6.3% of
persons, experienced sexual harassment. Around the world, 205 million workers
have encountered inappropriate touches, remarks, images, emails, or sexual
solicitations.

Women were shown to be more
likely to encounter psychological aggression and harassment than men were.
However, men were more frequently the victims of psychological abuse.

Physical assaults were also
discovered to be frequent. 8.5% of the population, or 277 million people, have
experienced physical abuse such hitting, restraint, or spitting.

Males were more likely to have
dealt with it and to have reported the abuse, but both sexes experienced it.
The study demonstrates that certain demographic groups are more likely than
others to experience violence and harassment at work. It was discovered both
men and women were more likely to experience violence and harassment at work if
they were young, migrants, earning wages or salaries, and this was particularly
true of women.

"For
instance, survey data suggest that migrant women were almost twice as likely as
nonmigrant women to report sexual abuse and harassment, and young women were
twice as likely than young males to have suffered sexual violence and
harassment."

Nevertheless, just one in two or
54.4% of the victims have reported their unpleasant experiences, despite the
disturbingly high numbers. The victims were more likely to have these
discussions with friends and family than with other informal or official
routes.

According
to the ILO, this may be attributable to "risks of re-victimization or
retaliation, fear of stigmatisation, ignorance of reporting and monitoring
procedures, "normalisation" of violence and harassment, and lack of
reporting and monitoring information." "Waste of time" and
"fear for their reputation" were the two most prevalent anxieties
that prevented people from speaking out about the abuse.

The research urges the implementation of prevention strategies;
already-existing workplace and national strategies could be expanded upon or
modified to address workplace abuse prevention. Additionally, it promotes
raising awareness of violence and harassment, improving institutions' capacity
to provide efficient remedies, and promoting and building a right-based
framework as a means of addressing the issue.