File Photo / Tim Greenway
Betsy Peters, a founding member of MaineCanDo, describes sexual harassment as a public epidemic that needs to be addressed urgently.
Updated: July 10, 2019
Sexual harassment common in Maine workplaces, survey shows
Courtesy / MaineCanDo
Close to half of Maine employees have experienced sexual harassment in the workplace, according to the results of a groundbreaking survey released Wednesday.
The research was conducted by Pan Atlantic Research for MaineCanDo, a professional network formed to prevent future #MeToo incidents.
Maine’s first statewide survey of sexual harassment and workplace cultures elicited responses from 303 employees and 216 employers to two separate questionnaires.
Each survey was preceded by a definition of sexual harassment as including unwanted sexual advances, requests for sexual favors or other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature that threatens job security, working conditions or advancement opportunities.
The survey also noted that sexual harassment is against state and federal law.
Out of 303 employees who filled in a survey, 149 — or 49.2% — said they had experienced sexual harassment in a Maine workplace.
Asked about the nature of harassment experienced, 77.9% listed offensive remarks, while 53.7% reported staring, leering or ogling and 53.7% said they had experienced derogatory comments related to gender.
Betsy Peters, a founding member of MaineCanDo, told Mainebiz she found the survey results to be in line with national trends and recent surveys in other states.
"We're depressingly normal," she said.
She said it also confirmed that sexual harassment is not a gender issue, pointing to the fact that close to one in five (18.8%) of male employees reported having experienced harassment. That’s below the 57.6% level for female respondents.
Courtesy / MaineCanDo
“It’s a power dynamic more than anything else,” Peters emphasized. “It’s important to enlarge the conversation so that it’s not just a gender issue.”
Organizations including the Maine Association of Nonprofits and Coastal Enterprises Inc., part of the MaineCanDo coalition, have pledged widespread distribution of the survey results along with other efforts to help businesses and nonprofit groups support employees in harassment-free workplaces.
Peters describes sexual harassment as a public health epidemic and says that addressing the problem and changing workplace culture should be a priority for all employers, including smaller businesses without an HR department.
"To me it's very much a dollars and cents issue as well as an emotional health issue for your organization," she said.
In coming weeks Peters will address the topic of sexual harassment as a speaker at the Maine Development Foundation’s Leadership in Action Breakfast on July 24 in Orono and at Verrill Dana’s Summer Director Series on July 25 in Portland.
The full survey results can be found at https://www.mecando.org/research.html.
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Anonymous
July 10, 2019
Despite the obvious, the workplace remains one of the places where many real relationships form. Asking a coworker out for drinks or dinner could be either harassment or a date. There is a very fine line - one that could ruin careers or provide a lifetime partner.
It is disconcerting that a simple hug has become associated with harassment. Hugs are good for the soul and rarely should be considered harassment. It's what happens before and after the hug that determines intent. And it is intent that distinguishes harassment and a gesture of support for a job well done.
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