Katy Gallagher, the minister for finance, women and public service of Australia, said that approximately 1 in 5 Australians have been sexually harassed at the work, in the last year, the government inquiry report revealed.
Katy said that the reports of the fifth survey done by the Australian Human Rights Commission revealed horrifying results on sexual harassment in workplaces of Australia.
“It was learnt that in the past five years, as many as 41% of Australian women were sexually harassed at work”, she tweeted, adding that every person has the right to a safe and respectful work place.
“Thank you to everyone who spoke out and called for change at workplaces across the nation. We’ve had a year since the publication of the Set the Standard report on parliamentary culture where I work. Without the courage of those who spoke out, the changes would not be taking place”, the minister said on twitter.
According to the poll, only 18% of cases of workplace sexual harassment are reported, which is extremely low. More women (41%) than males (26%) reported having experienced harassment, and more than seven in ten harassers (77%) were male.
Four years after the previous national survey discovered comparable rates of experiences of workplace sexual harassment reported, the current study, Time for respect: the national survey of workplace sexual harassment in workplaces, was conducted.
In a speech at National Press Club, Australia’s Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins will deliver the findings. She said: “It is unacceptable that so many Australian workers continue to face sexual harassment.”
Although disheartening, it is not surprising that these results mirror those of the prior poll given that the majority of the RespectatWork Report’s recommendations have just recently been implemented, and some are currently being done so.
The RespectatWork Bill, which will make it mandatory for all companies to take action to prevent sexual harassment, was approved by the federal parliament this week.
