Violence and harassment

November 17 is a day dedicated to end violence and harassment in commerce. Research company Maskína conducted a survey among almost 30,000 VR members, asking about harassment and violence at work. The survey was submitted in September and October 2023. The results of the survey can be seen below.

VR has made available on the front page of vr.is a form where members can send anonymous tips to the union if they suspect that violations have been committed against employees at the workplace. See more here. Full confidentiality is promised.

Results of a survey on violence and harassment at work - key figures

Maskína asked almost 30,000 VR members 15 questions about their experience of harassment and violence at work. The response rate was just over 16%. The survey was sent out in Icelandic, English and Polish.

The definition of violence and harassment used by the survey is taken from the International Labor Organization (ILO) and is quite broad: it covers any behavior that is unfair to the victim and has the purpose or effect of causing psychological, physical, financial or sexual harm. Harassment or violence at work can thus include anything from rude behavior by customers to serious physical or sexual violence.

Perpetrators can be managers, colleagues or 3rd parties (e.g. customers or clients).

• 54% of VR members have experienced harassment or violence at work at some point in their careers.
  • 67% of women aged 25-34.
  • 60% of members of foreign origin.
• 18% of VR members have experienced harassment or violence at work in the last 12 months.
  • 9% of VR members have experienced harassment or violence at work four or more times in the last 12 months.
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  52% of VR members who have experienced harassment or violence at work reported the incident, and half of them were dissatisfied with the workplace's response.
  • For those VR members who said they did not know where to turn in cases of harassment or violence at work, 80% were dissatisfied with the workplace's response.
    
    
• 23% of VR members have received unfair criticism of their work in the last 12 months.
  • 18% have experienced hurtful or humiliating behavior in front of others.
  •  8% have experienced threatening behavior or threats.
  • 6% have been sexually harassed.
  • 1% have experienced physical violence.

Prevention matters

The results of the VR survey indicate that preventive work and preparation are very important when it comes to preventing violence and harassment and responding correctly to reported incidents.

The following table shows how preemptive measures influence the answers of respondents, when asked whether they have suffered from violence or harassment in the workplace, at any point in their career:

Staff in workplaces where there is no plan for responding to harassment or violence at work, no risk assessment available, or where staff say they do not know where to turn in cases of harassment or violence at work, is much more likely to experience harassment or violence, much more likely to witness harassment or violence towards colleagues and much more likely to be dissatisfied with the workplace's response.

• 47% of employees who say that there is a plan for responding to harassment/violence at work have experienced harassment or violence at work at some point during their career as opposed to 64% of those who say that such a plan does not exist.
• 44% of employees who say that there is a risk assessment/prevention policy in relation to harassment/violence at their workplace have experienced harassment or violence at work at some point during their career, as opposed to 67% of those who say that such a risk assessment is not available.
• 49% of employees who say they know where to turn within the workplace, would they experience harassment/violence at work, have experienced harassment or violence at work at some point in their career, as opposed to 70% of those who say they don't know where to turn.

A similar effect can be seen in the question of whether people have witnessed violence or harassment towards colleagues in the last 12 months – in the places where prevention is not in order, the percentage doubles.

The perpetrators

The survey asked about perpetrators - ie. whether staff who had experienced harassment or violence at work suffered from it at the hands of managers, co-workers or third parties (e.g. customers, clients, or external parties at the workplace). The results are as follows:

• 56% have experienced harassment or violence at work by managers.
• 45% have experienced harassment or violence at work by coworkers.
• 24% have experienced harassment or violence at work by customers or clients.
  • For shopkeepers, customers were the perpetrators in 40% of cases.
• 4% have been harassed or harassed at work by other external parties at the workplace.