3 things our Lived Experience Advisory Panel taught us this November

At Circle Green, we believe that the voices and views of people who have lived experiences of workplace sexual harassment are vital in guiding our work.

In October 2022, Circle Green’s Workplace Respect Project onboarded 7 Lived Experience Advisors to form our Lived Experience Advisory Panel (LEAP). The selected panellists represent a diverse range of experiences, sectors and skills which inform the development and delivery of the Workplace Respect Project.

In November, the Project team met with five of our Lived Experience Advisors to convene the first LEAP meeting and gather their valuable insight on a range of topics related to workplace sexual harassment.

This is what we learned…

Many workers are unaware of the broad spectrum of workplace sexual harassment behaviours

“I was sexually harassed at a large ASX200 company. One night an older man in my team told me he was sexually attracted to me, and at that point I knew this had crossed the line. It was only once it reached this unequivocally inappropriate level that I told him to stop. On reflection, technically what he was subjecting me to for at least a year in the lead up to this incident, was harassment but back then I thought that this was an ‘ok level’ – I didn’t know enough about what sexual harassment was or what was acceptable in the workplace that I tolerated this. I told them to stop after that night, but didn’t tell anyone so we still had to work together for several months until it started to affect my performance at which point I told my boss and went through a formal HR process. The perpetrator substantiated my allegations but was never fired, I had to move teams and we still worked in the same building every day, which caused me a lot of distress. I wasn’t happy with the resolution I received and didn’t get closure, but I also didn’t have the energy to go through it all again and explore external legal avenues because i was didn’t think it would get taken seriously…”

– LEAP member

Sexual harassment is defined as unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature which makes a person feel offended, humiliated and/or intimidated, where a reasonable person would anticipate that reaction in the circumstances.

Everyone’s Business, the 2018 Australian Human Rights Commission national survey on Australian workplace sexual harassment, revealed that  49% of all respondents who initially said they had not experienced being sexually harassed based on the legal definition went on to report experiencing sexual harassment when specific sexual harassment behaviours were later described to them.

Less overt sexually harassing behaviour can include (but is not limited to) intrusive personal questions, suggestive jokes, and repeated compliments about physical appearance. It is important for people being targeted by these behaviours (and those perpetrating them) to know they are not legally acceptable and not part of respectful workplace behaviour.

Interested in knowing more about what constitutes workplace sexual harassment and relevant protections? Visit the Respect@Work portal for more info.

Many workers are unaware of their options outside of internal reporting to HR

There is no one ‘right way’ to respond to workplace sexual harassment. Many LEAP members found the process of reporting their experience internally to HR or management to be a difficult, isolating, negative experience. Some members noted that they were re-traumatised by being required to tell their story multiple times or felt that risk management surrounding media optics and company image were prioritised by HR over employee personal safety and wellbeing.

In hindsight, multiple members expressed wishing that they were made aware by employers during training, on how to access alternatives, such as reporting to external anti-discrimination and/or work health and safety bodies,  contacting their union representative, or seeking legal assistance. Given the impact of workplace sexual harassment on people who are targeted by these behaviours, it may also be worth considering seeking mental health support, telling a close friend or family member, and/or practicing self-care such as meditation, yoga, or journaling.

Interested in learning more? Useful resources on external pathways in WA are now available on the newly launched Respect@Work website.

Words matter, and the words we choose to use should place responsibility on the perpetrator

Language is important, and the language used to describe the experiences of people who are experiencing and/or have experienced sexual harassment and/or gender-based violence more broadly, is complex and constantly evolving.
“Victim,” “survivor,” “person who has experienced sexual harassment,” “victim-survivor,” and “person with lived experience” are all applicable terms serving different purposes for those who have experienced, and/or are experiencing sexual harassment.

All participating LEAP members expressed, for a variety of reasons, that they did not identify with labels such as ‘victim’ or ‘survivor’ and would like the onus to instead remain on the perpetrator’s behaviour. Advisors unanimously preferred ‘person targeted by sexual harassment’ as they felt it clearly assigned responsibility to the perpetrator, and did not feel like a limiting, fixed identity label placed upon them.  Going forward, Workplace Respect Project resources will primarily use ‘person targeted by sexual harassment’, noting that other terms may be used interchangeably where appropriate, as determined by context.

We look forward to convening our second LEAP meeting, which will be held over the coming months. Following each meeting, the Workplace Respect Project team will continue to share valuable insights from the LEAP.

To learn more about our work, visit our January-June 2022 Project Update or contact us.