Sexual harassment at work

The term sexual harassment in the workplace includes any behavior with sexual reference or based on gender that is unwanted from one side and that violates a person's dignity. The harassment can occur during work or at company events. It can originate from employees, from members of partner companies or from the company's customers.

There is a simple rule for assessing whether observed behavior is harmless flirtation, a budding relationship among work colleagues, or a case of sexual harassment: the decisive factor is not the intention of the harasser, but how his or her behavior is perceived by the person concerned, whether that person perceives it as desirable or undesirable.

A good working atmosphere pays off

It is not only in the interest of employees to actively combat sexual harassment. It is also about a good working atmosphere, as the study on the prevalence of the risk of sexual harassment in the workplace by the Swiss Federal Office for Gender Equality, FOGE and SECO shows. People who report experiencing sexually harassing behavior at work also rate the work climate significantly lower. This, in turn, has a negative impact on production.

For information on effective prevention approaches and necessary measures to take in the event of a suspected violation of personal integrity, see the SECO publications below.