Workplace Sexual Harassment And The Effect On Mental Health - Recognising And Creating A Healthy Workplace

Against a backdrop of increasing awareness of the importance of good mental health, allegations of workplace sexual harassment by those in positions of power come thick and fast, causing a serious headache for Mrs May and business leaders alike.

Here we explore the effect of workplace sexual harassment on mental health and how to look out for the signs of ill-health to develop a healthy and positive environment.

In January, the Prime Minister commissioned the Stevenson/Farmer Review (the Review) to explore how employers can support the mental health of their staff, to remain in and thrive at work. The Review explored ways in which poor mental health is exhibited at work; on the individual, their team and organisation, citing analysis by Deloitte which estimated the cost to employers as £33-42 billion per year.

The overarching vision of the Review is that within a decade, everyone will be employed in "Good Work". The Review explains the concept of Good Work as "autonomy, fair pay, work life balance and opportunities for progression and the absence of bullying and harassment".

Most of us are familiar with the first limb of the definition of sexual harassment under the Equality Act 2010; unwanted conduct of a sexual nature which has the purpose or effect of violating someone's dignity, or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for them.

There is a second limb is designed to protect further against the use of power to harass: that because of a person's rejection of harassment, they are subject to retaliation.

The protection afforded is therefore intended to cover the whole spectrum from lewd looks and 'banter', to sending staff out to buy sex toys and ensuring a victim's career goes no further because they called it out.

The effect of poor mental health on our ability to work and performance in work is well documented. But what about the impact of sexual harassment on a person's mental health?

Sexual harassment is hard to spot and deal with. It can happen in private settings with no witnesses, in poor workplace cultures where peers perceive it to be the norm, or in plain sight when the perpetrator relies on the victim not wanting to disrupt the scene and make a fuss.

A recent Danish study concluded that sexual harassment caused by colleagues was linked to higher levels of depressive symptoms than that from customers or clients. This is because a "power-perspective must be acknowledged", recognising it...

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