Horizontal, vertical gender segregation also present in Australian workforce: rerport
In the past five years, one in five retail workers in Australia have personally experienced sexual harassment at work, with women and young employees more likely to be victimised.
These were the findings of Gendered disrespect and inequality in retail work, a report from University of Sydney and the Australia National University, which surveyed 1,160 retail workers across Australia.
According to the report, women (23%) and people below 30 years old (23%) were more likely to have experienced sexual harassment at work in the past five years.
The most common instances associated with sexual harassment include:
- Sexually suggestive comments or jokes (62%)
- Intrusive questions about one's private life or physical appearance (45%)
- Staring or leering (41%)
- Physical contact (31%)
- Someone following, watching, or loitering nearby (29%)
According to the respondents, the most common perpetrators of harassment are:
- Someone more senior (36%)
- A customer (34%)
- Co-worker at the same level (23%)
- Co-worker more junior (5%)
- Prefer not to say (2$)
The little difference between retail managers and customers suggests that "inherent power balances exist in the retail industry," according to the report.
"This has important implications for the future of the retail workforce and how these issues are addressed, suggesting that continued efforts are far from complete in ensuring that workers (particularly women) feel safe and respected in the retail industry," the report said.
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Gender inequality also present
Meanwhile, the report also found vertical and horizontal gender segregation in the retail industry, despite its "highly feminised workforce."
It found that women were overrepresented in customer-facing interactive service work while men were overrepresented in non-customer facing roles, a form of horizontal gender segregation.
Women are also underrepresented in senior leadership positions, while men are overrepresented in them, according to the report.
"Despite being a workforce dominated by women, men are more likely to rise to the most senior positions in retail organisations," said lead author Professor Rae Cooper, also the director of the Gender Equality in Working Life research initiative, as quoted by a University of Sydney report.
"They [women] remain severely underrepresented in senior leadership roles within the retail industry, holding only 27% of board positions and 17% of chief executive officer roles."
Julia Fox, national assistant secretary of the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees' Association, said the findings reflect the "lack of respect" for women in retail.
"Their skills and capabilities are undervalued and unrecognised. In 2023, we still see that because of the lack of genuine career opportunities, women are underrepresented in management and leadership positions in what is a female dominated industry," Fox said.
'Strong' action needed
It is critical that employers provide adequate training on how to address and prevent gendered abuse and harassment in retail workplaces, according to Cooper.
This change should also require a shift in attitude and is needed at the executive level.
"An inherent power imbalance exists in the retail industry. Strong action must be taken to address this imbalance and improve workplace civility and respect in the sector," Cooper said in a statement.