Have you or someone you know been the victim of sexual harassment in a New York City workplace? If so, you are not alone. As the following 10 Troubling Statistics About Sexual Harassment shows, sexual harassment in the workplace is too common. Learn more about the prevalence of sexual harassment in the workplace and what you can do if you are a victim here.

What Actions Constitute Sexual Harassment in the Workplace?

There are two types of sexual harassment in the workplace: quid pro quo and hostile work environment.

Both are against the law and can lead to the victim being awarded compensation. The first, quid pro quo harassment, occurs when the victim is propositioned for sexual favors in exchange for a benefit or preventing a threat. Some common examples include requesting sexual favors in exchange for:

Job Offering
Benefits
Favorable work schedule
Raise
Easier workload
Not being terminated

The second type of workplace sexual harassment is a hostile work environment. A hostile work environment is a broad term that covers any situation where someone is caused to feel emotionally distressed at work. Examples of hostile work environments include:

Sexual comments
Jokes of a sexual nature
Distributing sexual content
Unwelcome sexual advances or physical conduct
Inappropriate touching
Sexual assault
Sexual violence

What Are the Nationwide Statistics for Sexual Harassment?

Whatever form sexual harassment in the workplace takes, it can have a devastating impact on victims. Here are 10 Troubling Statistics About Sexual Harassment.

The majority of sexual harassment incidents go unreported.

A 2017 study found that 63% of women and 79% of men did not report sexual harassment in the workplace.

Over half of sexual harassment in the workplace complaints come after retaliation.

In 2020, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released a report showing that 55.8% of sexual harassment complaints are reported after the victim has been retaliated against.

Sexual Harassment in the workplace costs employers big money.

Lost productivity accounts for a cost of $2.6 billion annually or $1,053 per victim. Therefore, it is in a company’s best interest to prevent workplace sexual harassment.

Senior employees were responsible for 72% of sexual harassment claims in the workplace.

Nearly three-fourths of all workplace sexual harassment claims are caused by harassment from a senior employee.

LGBTQ workers experienced sexual harassment 68% of the time and sexual assault at a rate of 12%

Workers who identify as LGBTQ experience sexual harassment in the workplace more often than men or women.

In 37% of cases, women reported that the sexual harassment they experienced hindered their career advancement.

Due in part to the emotional trauma following such an event, women are especially vulnerable to their careers stalling after sexual harassment.

31% of victims struggled with emotional side effects: anxiety and depression are common after an incident.

For victims who struggle with anxiety or depression after an incident, they may suffer repercussions in every aspect of their lives. This means that their personal and professional lives suffer.

Of all reported incidents, 95% of men go unpunished.

This shocking statistic highlights the imbalance of power in sexual harassment incidents involving men.

32% of workers didn’t know that jokes could be considered sexual harassment.

Lack of awareness of what behavior constitutes sexual harassment is a contributing factor to the prevalence of incidents.

98% of companies have a sexual harassment policy in place

This statistic highlights the disparity between the number of harassment policies instituted nationwide and the high occurrence of sexual harassment incidents.

What Can I Do if I’ve Experienced Sexual Harassment in the Workplace?

As these 10 Troubling Statistics About Sexual Harassment show, if you are a victim you are not alone. If you’ve experienced sexual harassment in the workplace, contact the experienced Sexual Harassment Attorneys NYC at Ricotta & Marks, P.C. Give us a call today at (716) 301-2704 to start your claim.

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