Why are more than 60% of victims not reporting workplace harassment?
More than six in 10 women in Hong Kong who experienced sexual harassment at work have not reported the incident, according to a new poll.
The survey, as reported by The Standard, was conducted by the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB), women's rights groups, and business associations among 103 companies and 311 female employees.
The poll found that more than 30% of female employees have experienced sexual harassment at work in the past three years, with the harassment involving language, text messages, or physical contact.
Among the victims, 60% said they did not take action. Another 30% complained to their superior, while only nine per cent filed a complaint to the police or to the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC), according to The Standard report.
Some of the reasons cited by those who did not report the incident include not being surprised by harassment and not wanting to damage relationships at work.
Another 17% said they did not think reporting the incident would help, while five percent expressed fear of losing their jobs.
The underreported cases are reflected on employers' data, as around 91% of the businesses surveyed said they did not receive complaints involving sexual harassment.
In fact, the poll found that more than half of the organisations have not established policy statements or complaint and handling procedures that can protect privacy.
More than 60% of employers and senior managers surveyed said they are aware of the definition of workplace harassment, but only 9.6% of them have received anti-sexual harassment training.
Elizabeth Quat Pei-fan, chair of DAB's women affairs committee, called out the lack of anti-sexual harassment initiatives in workplaces, The Standard reported.
"Many firms talked about their ESG [environmental, social, and governance] initiatives, such as green measures, community services and anti-corruption, but I have not heard any of them mention the prevention of workplace sexual harassment," Quat said as quoted by the news outlet.
Hong Kong's Sex Discrimination Ordinance makes it unlawful for individuals to harass colleagues or jobseekers.
"It is unlawful for a person who is a workplace participant to harass a woman who is also a workplace participant at a workplace of them both," the ordinance reads.
It was recently applied to a case addressed by the District Court on February 14, where an employer was ordered to pay a total compensation of HK$182,387.30 to a foreign domestic worker for sexual harassment.
"Eliminating sexual harassment has always been a top priority for the EOC," said EOC chairperson Linda Lam Mei-sau in a statement.
"We hope that this ruling will encourage more victims of workplace sexual harassment to come forward and seek redress for such unlawful acts. Between 2022 and 2024, 89 out of the 116 sexual harassment cases that underwent conciliation reached a settlement, achieving a success rate of 77%."
