Transport study

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(c) Copyright Center for Women Policy Studies, Revised Edition, November 1995

(1) Data collected for the National Crime Victimization Survey come from interviews with approximately 50,000 households and 100,000 individuals age 12 or older who are selected annually from a continuous, nationally representative sample of households in the United States. The redesigned NCVS for 1992 and 1993 encourages more accurate reporting of incidents of rape and sexual assault and includes incidents not reported to police.

(2) Because various agencies use different methodologies to collect data on violence against women, the data inevitably vary.

(3) According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the term "serious" injury refers to knife and gun shot wounds, broken bones, loss of teeth, and loss of consciousness; " minor" injury refers to bruises, black eyes, swells, cuts, and scratches.

REFERENCES

Bastian, L. (1995). Criminal victimization. Bureau of Justice Statistics Bulletin. Washington, DC: Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice.

Bachman, R. (1994, January). Violence against women: A national crime victimization survey report. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.

Bachman, R. and Saltzman, L. (1995, August). Violence against women: Estimates from the Resigned Survey. Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.

Baker, K. et al. (1989). Report of District of Columbia Police response to domestic violence. Washington D.C.: D.C. Coalition Domestic Violence and Women’s Law and Public Policy Fellowship Program at Georgetown University Law Center.

Berry, D.B. (1995). The domestic violence sourcebook. Los Angeles, CA: Lowell House.

Bokmer, C. and Parrot, A. (1993). Sexual assault on campus: The problem and the solution. New York, NY: Lexington.

Branch-Rooke, J. McKinley, T.W., and Sikes, R.K. Domestic violence: An analysis of battered women in Georgia: Journal of MAG, 79, 907-913.

Brown, W.A. and Maestro-Shrer J. (1986, July 1). Assessing sexual harassment and public safety: A survey of Cornell women. New York, NY: Cornell Institute for Social and Economic Research.

Browne, A. and Williams, K.R. (1989). Exploring the effect of resource and availability and the likelihood of female-perpetrated homicides. Law and Society Review, 23, 75-94.

Burgess, A.W., Hartman, C.R., Ressler, R.K., et al; (1986). Sexual homicide: A motivational model. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 1, 251- 272.

Crime Victims Research and Treatment Center of the National Victim Center.

REFERENCE: Ronet Bachman Ph.D., U.S. Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics, "Violence Against Women: A National Crime Victimization Survey Report", January 1994.

Nearly 2 in 3 female victims of violence were related to or knew their attacker. (p. iii)

Over two-thirds of violent victimizations against women were committed by someone known to them: 31% of female victims reported that the offender was a stranger. Approximately 28% were intimates such as husbands or boyfriends, 35% were acquaintances, and the remaining 5% were other relatives. (In contrast, victimizations by intimates and other relatives accounted for only 5% of all violent victimizations against men. Men were significantly more likely to have been victimized by acquaintances (50%) or strangers (44%) than by intimates or other relatives.) (p. 1)

Almost 6 times as many women victimized by intimates (18%) as those victimized by strangers (3%) did not report their violent victimization to police because they feared reprisal from the offender. (p. 1)

Annually, compared to males, females experienced over 10 times as many incidents of violence by an intimate. On average each year, women experienced 572,032 violent victimizations at the hands of an intimate, compared to 48,983 incidents committed against men. (p. 6)

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Subject: Violence Against Women

U.S. Department of Justice
ADVANCE FOR RELEASE AT 5 P.M. EST BJS
SUNDAY, JANUARY 30, 1994 202-307-0784

TWO-THIRDS OF WOMEN VIOLENCE VICTIMS ARE ATTACKED BY RELATIVES OR ACQUAINTANCES

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A study of violence against women shows that two-thirds of these attacks were committed by someone the victim knew--such as a husband, boyfriend, other family member or acquaintance--a much higher figure than for men.

The survey, conducted by the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics, found approximately 2.5 million of the nation’s 107 million females 12 years old and older were raped, robbed or assaulted in a typical year, or were the victim of a threat or an attempt to commit such a crime. Twenty-eight percent of the offenders were intimates, such as husbands or boyfriends, and another 39 percent were acquaintances or relatives.

"The number of women attacked by spouses, former spouses, boyfriends, parents or children is more than 10 times higher than the number of males attacked by such people," said Acting Bureau Director Lawrence A. Greenfeld.

Approximately one in four attacks involved the use of a gun or knife, according to the study.

Young, black and Hispanic women were especially vulnerable, as were poor single women with low education levels who lived in inner cities. The findings were drawn from more than 400,000 interviews conducted between 1987 and 1991.

The report pointed out that although violent crimes against males have decreased since the Bureau of Justice Statistics started its annual victimization surveys in 1973, the rate against females has remained relatively constant. However, males were victimized at a 63 percent higher rate than females--40.5 violent offenses per 1,000 males compared to 24.8 per 1,000 females.

Although black females were more than twice as likely as were white females to be robbery victims, there were no significant racial differences in per capita rates among female victims of rape or assault.

Females who lived in central cities were twice as likely to be raped as were women who lived in suburban or rural areas. Inner-city women were also more than twice as likely to be robbed as were suburban women and four times more likely than rural women.

Among women injured during the offense, injuries were almost twice as likely to happen if the offender was a husband or boyfriend than if the offender was a stranger.

Generally speaking, violent crime against women was intraracial. Eighty percent of the violent crimes against white women were committed by white offenders, and almost 90 percent of the violent crimes against black women were committed by black offenders.

Women with family incomes of less than $10,000 were five times more likely to be attacked by an intimate than were women with family incomes of $30,000 or more.

Eighteen percent of the women who were attacked by intimates did not report the offense to police because they feared reprisal from their attackers, compared to 3 percent who were attacked by strangers.

Single copies of the BJS National Crime Victimization Survey Report, "Violence Against Women" (NCJ-145325) as well as other BJS statistical reports may be obtained from the National Criminal Justice Reference Service, Box 6000, Rockville, Maryland 20850. The telephone number is 1-800-732-3277.

Thursday, May 28, 1998

In 1996, 89% of spousal assaults reported to police in Canada were against female victims and 11% were against males. Between 1993 and 1996, the reported incidents of spousal violence dropped by 7%.

However, the pattern differs for male and female victims: incidents involving male victims rose 6%, whereas those involving female victims fell 9%.

The overall drop in reported spousal assaults is consistent with the decline in overall crime rates during the same period. As well, the number of spousal assault offenders who used weapons or inflicted major injuries declined.

The 1993 Violence Against Women Survey lends itself to analysis of a number of factors that affect the risk of being the female victim of spousal assault. The strongest risk factor is the presence of emotional abuse by male spouses, particularly degrading name-calling. Other factors increasing the risk of victimization are the age of the couple (18 to 24 years of age), living in a common-law relationship, long-term unemployment on the part of the male partner, and witnessing violence as a child (by either the man or the woman).

Parents implicated in assaults on children

In 1996, children under 18 were victims in 22% of the violent crimes reported to police. Family members were responsible for one-fifth of physical assaults and one-third (32%) of sexual assaults on children.

Parents were the most likely perpetrators in cases of family-related physical (64%) and sexual (43%) assaults against children. Fathers were responsible for 73% of physical assaults and 98% of sexual assaults committed by parents.

Girls and boys appear to be vulnerable to abuse by family members at different stages of their development. In cases of sexual assault, girls are more likely to be victimized at 12 to 15 years of age, compared with 4 to 8 years of age for boys. The likelihood of being physically assaulted by a family member increases with age for girls, reaching a peak at age 17. For boys, the peak age for physical assault is 13, and then it declines. (...)

Seniors victimized by adult children and spouses

Adults over 65 were victims in 2% of reported crimes of violence in 1996, and one-fifth of these involved family members. Overall, adult children (44%) and spouses (34%) were responsible for the majority of family violence cases involving seniors.

Family violence against older women is predominantly a case of violence by spouses. According to police reports, older women (those 65 and over) were most often assaulted by a spouse or an ex-spouse (42% of women, compared with 18% of men). It was most often an adult child who assaulted an older man (59% of men, compared with 37% of women).

Domestic violence often a precursor to family homicides

Spousal killings are often preceded by a history of violence. Between 1991 and 1996, police officers were aware of previous domestic violence between the victim and the suspect in over half of all spousal homicides (56%). One-quarter of family homicides involving children and seniors also had a known history of violence.

Between 1977 and 1996, there were 12,666 victims of homicide in Canada, one-third of which involved family members (4,193 victims). The largestcategory of family homicides during this time period involved spouses (49%), followed by children killed by a parent (22%) and parents killed by a child (10%).

For children under 18, the highest risk of homicide occurs within the first two years of life. In 1996, the rate of homicide for infants under two was seven times higher than the rate of homicide for those aged 2 to 17.

Family violence in Canada: A statistical profile, 1998 (85-224-XPE, $25) is now available. See How to order publications. The publication is also available for viewing and free download (85-224-XIE) on the Internet. See www.statcan.ca.

For further information on this release, contact Information and Client Services

(613-951-9023; 1 800 387-2231), Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics.

Table: Parents are most likely the perpetrators in family assaults against children

* A national census was undertaken over two weeks in 1994 to investigate the demand for women’s refuges and other accommodation services funded by the Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP). In these two weeks, an average of 2,149 women escaping domestic violence were accommodated each night. The number of women seeking refuge who could not be accommodated over the two weeks was 1,956.

REFERENCE: Supported Accommodation Assistance Program. 1994. Two Weeks in September: National Census of SAAP Funded accommodation services 11-25 September 1994. Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service.

* The Women’s Domestic Violence Crisis Service of Victoria, which provides services to Victorian women experiencing domestic violence, received 5,198 calls for the period July-December 1996, from callers seeking information, support or emergency accommodation.

REFERENCE: Women’s Domestic Violence Crisis Service. Statistical Information July-December 1996. Information provided by Women’s Domestic Violence Crisis Service.

* In 1995-96 Victorian Police received 15,613 reports of incidents of family violence. Of victims, 81% were women, while men made up 83% of perpetrators.

REFERENCE: Victoria Police. Crime Statistics 1995/96. Information provided by Victoria Police Family Violence Project Office.

* In 1995-96 there were 17,055 applications for Intervention Orders in Victorian Magistrates Courts. Of these applications 13,394 (or 79%) involved women as the victims of domestic violence, and 89% of applications taken out by women involved males as perpetrators.

REFERENCE: Department of Justice Victoria. 1996. Crimes (Family Violence) Act Monitoring Report 1995/96. Caseflow analysis section, Courts and Tribunals Division, Department of Justice, Victoria.

In a survey conducted in 1991, a total of 1,211 people who attended the emergency department of the Royal Brisbane Hospital in Queensland completed a domestic violence questionnaire (Domestic violence was defined in this survey to include psychological as well as physical forms of abuse, and included abuse in childhood). It found that: • 14.1% of total respondents disclosed a history of domestic violence. • 23.3% of women respondents (or 130 women) reported a history of domestic violence.

REFERENCE: Roberts, G., O’Toole, B., Lawrence, J. and Raphael, B. 1993 "Domestic violence victims in a hospital emergency department", Medical Journal of Australia, Vol.1595, September, pp. 307—10

In a study conducted in Melbourne in November 1993 and February 1994, questionnaire responses from women attending general practitioners revealed that 28% of women surveyed had experienced either physical or emotional abuse within their current relationship in the previous year.

REFERENCE: Mazza, D., Dennerstein, L. and Ryan, V. 1996 "Physical, sexual and emotional violence against women: A general practice-based prevalence study", Medical Journal of Australia, 164(1), pp. 14—17

A study of Australia-wide homicide data for 1989-91 found that of 150 killings between adults in intimate relationships, 121 victims were female. Of perpetrators of domestic homicides, around 80% were male.

REFERENCE: Easteal, Patricia 1993 Killing the beloved: Homicide between adult sexual intimates, Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology

Also see "Intimate homicides" above, which draws on: Carcach, Carlos and James, Marianne 1998 "Homicide between intimate partners in Australia", Trends and Issues (Australian Institute of Criminology), No. 90, July

Sexual harassment in particular

[Note: Excerpted from the following: Affirmative Action Agency 1998 Submission: Affirmative Action Agency, Affirmative Action Agency, Sydney.

Numbers in brackets refer to footnotes below.]

Information about the level of workplace sexual harassment can be gathered by collecting statistics about the percentage of organisations which have had employees reporting sexual harassment incidences. AWIRS 95 provides such information, finding that 16% of managers have had at least one sexual harassment complaint made at their workplace in the year prior to the survey. Another source of such information can be found in the equal opportunity newsletter, Discrimination Alert, which recently surveyed subscribers about whether their organisation had had employees reporting sexual harassment incidences. Forty-two per cent of surveyed respondents had experienced a sexual harassment complaint in the past 12 months, with a number having experienced more than one complaint. (7)

These two studies suggest different specific levels of sexual harassment. However, they both provide convincing evidence that sexual harassment remains a significant issue for workplaces throughout Australia, with at least one in eight Australian organisations having had employees report sexual harassment incidences.

Directly surveying workforce participants about their experiences of sexual harassment also reveals a disturbing picture of the current state-of-play; eg one national survey established that one in four women aged 16 to 25 claimed to have suffered sexual harassment at work, while one in seven respondents in the same survey indicated they believed sexual harassment at work is a common, or very common, problem.(8) A more recent Australia-wide survey of over 400 secretaries and administration staff provided similar results, with 22% (approximately one in four or five) of respondents considering they had been sexually harassed at work.(9) Together, these findings indicate that a considerable proportion of young women and secretarial and administrative staff (between one in four and one in five) are exposed to sexual harassment.

An analysis of discrimination complaints lodged at statutory bodies such as HREOC and state-based anti-discrimination boards also demonstrates that sexual harassment is a significant problem for women in the workforce. In many cases, the majority of discrimination complaints (particularly work-related complaints) lodged with these statutory bodies relate to sexual harassment. For instance, in 1993/94, 40% of the employment-related complaints received by the NSW Anti-Discrimination Board (ADB) concerned sexual harassment.(10) Similarly, in 1995/96, sexual harassment was the second most common area of complaint for the Victorian Equal Opportunity Commission (21% of all complaints).(11)

Indeed, during the past 20 years there has been a substantial increase in the number of complaints lodged with these bodies; eg sexual harassment-related complaints to the Victorian Equal Opportunity Commission have increased in number and in proportion to all complaints from seven (4% of all complaints) in 1978/79 to 237 (14% of all complaints) in 1996/97.(12) Similarly, since the SDA was enacted in 1984 the number of sexual harassment complaints lodged with HREOC has increased substantially, both in number (from 121 in 1984/85 to 729 in 1994/95) and in proportion to all complaints (from 15% in 1984/85 to 46% in 1994/95).(13) Dramatic increases in complaint numbers are also evident in NSW ADB complaint statistics. In one year the number of complaints rose by 88% (from 93 complaints in 1993/94 to 175 in 1994/95).(14)

This growth can be attributed to increasing community and workplace understanding of, firstly, the nature and illegality of sexual harassment and, secondly, the processes and procedures available to recipients of sexual harassment. It is certainly encouraging to find that legislation which seeks to support recipients of sexual harassment is proving to be of such assistance.

Increasingly, women in the workplace are finding themselves the target of gender-based harassment. Gender-based harassment involves conduct that denigrates, ridicules or is intimidatory or physically abusive of employees because of their sex. Obviously, gender-based harassment broadens the definition of what can be deemed harassment. It does this by recognising that people can be considered to have been harassed even if there has not been an explicit attempt to initiate sexual relations.

To date, limited attention has been paid to this area. Most studies into incidence of harassment affecting women have focused on sexual rather than gender-based harassment. However, a recent study conducted by the Adelaide Working Women’s Centre has highlighted the prevalence of workplace ‘bullying’ (ie repeated insults, sarcasm, belittling of views and opinions, persistent nitpicking, inappropriate criticism or work etc) in Australian workplaces. The survey was prompted by an increase in complaints to the centre about workplace bullying/harassment, from 71 in 1990 to 378 in 1996. The study confirmed that bullying/harassment is a widespread and significant problem in the workplace and one for which existing avenues to deal with it have proved inadequate.(15)

An analysis of statistics also provides information about the type of workplaces which are more likely to have sexual harassment complaints brought against them. AWIRS 95 data suggests sexual harassment complaints are more common in larger organisations and in public sector workplaces. This does not, however, indicate that sexual harassment is more prevalent in these workplaces. Instead, such findings are more likely to imply that employees in these workplaces are more aware of the nature and illegality of sexual harassment and the grievance processes available to them. Such claims find credence in further AWIRS 95 findings which indicate that training in EEO, AA and/or dealing with sexual harassment complaints is more likely to be provided in larger workplaces and in the public sector.

An Australia-wide survey of secretarial and administrative staff found that harassment of secretarial/administrative staff takes place most commonly in the advertising industry, while the construction industry shows the lowest levels of sexual harassment. (16)

[…]

Despite the paucity of empirical evidence in this area,(20) it seems clear that sexual harassment remains a significant issue for women in the workplace.(21)

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[Footnote 6] Women are far more likely than men to be the recipients of sexual harassment at work. Complaint data indicate the overwhelming majority of sexual harassment complainants are women. For instance, in 1996/97, approximately 86% of complaints lodged at HREOC were lodged by women. Recipients often include younger women in their first jobs, women returning to the workplace after a career break, subordinates, divorcees, widows, single parents, lesbians, women from ethnic minorities, women in predominantly male jobs and women with irregular employment contracts (J. Hodges, ‘Unwelcome, unwanted and increasingly illegal: Sexual harassment in the workplace’, World of Work, No. 19, 1997, pp. 7-9; International Labour Office, Conditions of Work Digest: Combating Sexual Harassment At Work, Volume 11, ILO, Geneva, 1992). Australian complaint data confirm this, indicating that sexual harassment recipients are most typically young (mid-20s to mid-30s) women in low level jobs, often in small business, who have usually left their job because of the harassment or have been dismissed for alleged poor work performance (S. Walpole, 1995, op. cit.) [S. Walpole, ‘Sexual harassment: The legal framework’, Working for Women? Anti-Discrimination, Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity: Women and Law Conference Proceedings, eds J. Larbalestier and D. Russell, Women’s Studies Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, 1995.]

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(7) ‘40% suffer harassment’, Discrimination Alert, No. 53, 9 December, 1997, p. 1. This finding should be viewed with caution due to small sample size (approximately 100 respondents) and a possible skewed sample population (subscribers to an EEO publication).

(8) Elliott & Shanahan Research, Executive Report of a Survey of Young Women in the Workplace, Conducted for the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, HREOC, Sydney, 1990.

(9) ‘Secretarial/Administration: Who is harassed? Alectus Personnel Survey’, Workplace Change, No. 10, December 1996, p. 6.

(10) Anti-Discrimination Board of NSW, 1993-94 Annual Report, ADB of NSW, Sydney, 1994.

(11) Equal Opportunity Commission, Victoria, Annual Report 1995/96, EOC, Victoria, Melbourne, 1996.

(12) K. Collier, ‘Harassment claims soar’, Herald Sun, 7 March 1998, p. 18.

(13) Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, Sexual Harassment and Education Institutions: A Guide of the Federal Sex Discrimination Act, HREOC, Sydney, 1996.

(14) Anti-Discrimination Board of NSW, 1994-95 Annual Report, ADB of NSW, Sydney, 1995.

(15) L. Sudano (Adelaide Working Women’s Centre Director), in M. Lloyd, ‘Bullies: From schoolyard to the office’, Payneham Messenger, 4 March 1998.

(16) ‘Secretarial/Administration: Who is harassed? Alectus Personnel Survey’, Workplace Change, 1996, op. cit., p. 6.

(17) ‘40% suffer harassment’, Discrimination Alert, 1997, op. cit. This finding should be viewed with caution due to small sample size (approximately 100 respondents) and a possible skewed sample population (subscribers to an EEO publication).

(18) quoted in S. Walpole, 1995, op. cit.

(19) ‘40% suffer harassment’, Discrimination Alert, 1997, op. cit. This finding should be viewed with caution due to small sample size (approximately 100 respondents) and a possible skewed sample population (subscribers to an EEO publication).

(20) The research examined in this area of the submission also demonstrates the importance of affirmative action legislation in providing relatively rare statistical information about the proportion of organisations focusing on fostering sexual-harassment free workplaces. These statistics, in tandem with Anti-Discrimination Board and HREOC statistics, provide an all-too-rare ‘state-of-play’ concerning the incidence of sexual harassment in the workplace and the level of activity aimed at preventing the same.

(21) This is particularly so given that complaint data consistently underestimate the actual level of workplace sexual harassment. Complaint data provide information about the number of employees who have actually reported a sexual harassment incident. They do not provide information about the number of employees who have been the recipient of sexual harassment. Employees concerned about rocking the proverbial boat may avoid making an official complaint. Additionally, research demonstrates that understanding of sexual harassment is often limited. A nation-wide survey of one of the major recipients of sexual harassment, young women, established that frequencies of sexual harassment experiences ‘may indeed represent the ìtip of the icebergî as some may have been harassed and not identified it as sexual harassment’ (Elliott & Shanahan Research, 1990, op. cit., p. 3). The research indicated there was a tendency for only blatant acts of sexual harassment (eg physical as opposed to verbal) to be clearly identified. For this reason, complaint data do not provide us with an accurate indicator about the level of workplace sexual harassment. What can, however, be established beyond any doubt is that any indicators we use for this purpose will consistently understate the actual state of affairs and, thus, data gathered in this section provides convincing evidence that sexual harassment continues to be a problem for women in Australian workplaces.

Australian Workplace Industrial Relations Survey 1995

REFERENCE: Morehead, Alison et.al 1997 Changes at work: The 1995 Australian Workplace Industrial Relations Survey, South Melbourne: Longman (Addison Wesley Longman)

DETAILS: The second large-scale workplace survey by the Commonwealth Dept of Industrial Relations. The first AWIRS was in 1990.

"Sixteen per cent of managers reported at least one sexual harassment complaint had been made at their workplace and 6 per cent reported at least one racial harassment complaint in the year prior to the survey. Both types of harassment complaint were more common in larger workplaces and at workplaces in the public sector. This may be related to the presence of policies dealing specifically with harassment or with equal opportunity policies more generally." [122]

REFERENCE: Chapman, Julie, Hall, Nellie and Reilly, Shalini 1992 1990 EEO Survey: Report for the NSW Public Sector, Office of the Director of Equal Opportunity in Public Employment, March

Survey of 88,420 employees in the NSW Public Sector, March 1990 (representing 37.1% of the total in this sector). This survey repeats the previous EEO survey in 1985.

Note: Below I have only included details of the Survey’s findings regarding sexual harassment, and not of its findings regarding various patterns of disadvantage relating to gender, ethnicity, Aboriginality and disability.

MAIN FINDINGS AND POLICY IMPLICATIONS

HARASSMENT:

"One in six employees reported experiencing some form of harassment within the last two years in their own organisation." [12]

"Women reported more sexual and marital harassment than men, while men reported more racial harassment. Younger women, more highly qualified women, women in the higher salary brackets, women in trades, wages and trainee occupations, women in agencies with uniformed workforces and women in agencies with predominantly male workforces were more likely to report sexual harassment than other women." [12]

(The report goes on to comment on rates of harassment related to ethnicity, Aboriginality, disability and so on, also including mention of rates related to gender for each. It also comments that analysis of how the rates have changed since 1985 (the last EEO survey) is not possible, because different questions on harassment were asked in 1985. [12])

SURVEY FINDINGS

HARASSMENT (pp. 133—149)

Introduction

"Respondents were asked about their on-the-job harassment experiences. Nine harassment situations were presented and staff indicated which, if any, they had experienced during the previous two years.

"During the analysis of the data, the nine harassment situations were collapsed into four categories, so that they could be more easily related to particular EEO groups; […]

"Sexual (pictures of a sexual nature displayed; repeated and unwelcome remarks, suggestions or jokes)." [133]

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"in the public sector as a whole, 16.6% of employees had experienced at least one form of harassment during the previous two years" [133].

"women reported more sexual and marital harassment than men, while men reported more racial harassment." [135]

"Female and male employees most likely to report experiences of harassment (one or more forms) were those in the 25 to 29 years age range. While women generally tended to report experiences of harassment more frequently than men, the gap between the two groups tended to be more marked among younger employees." [135]

"The incidence of sexual harassment was relatively high for women in the younger age groups. Sexual harassment was at its most prevalent within the 25 to 29 age grouping. Marital harassment, as expected, occurred more frequently between the ages of 25 and 39 years." [136]

Female employees reporting sexual and marital harassment by age group, from Figure 72, p. 136:

Age group Sexual Marital

15-19 11.5 3.0
20-24 15.1 7.6
25-29 17.5 13.7
30-39 11.0 14.6
40-49 6.7 9.3
50-54 3.3 5.0
55-59 4.0 5.3
over 60 1.8 3.7

CIRCUMSTANCES IN WHICH EMPLOYEES WERE HARASSED

(Also see the summary above.) "There were some relatively large differences across occupations, with more harassment reported by women in trades positions (39.2% of female employees), than by women in other occupations. Occupations in which the percentage of women reporting an experience of harassment exceeded 20.0% were wages 1, clerical administrative, specialist professional and trainee occupations. It is important to note that the estimated numbers of women in supervisory, trades and trainee positions were quite small, and this should be taken into account when interpreting the data." [143]

"the variation in the reported levels of harassment of men across occupations is relatively small." [143] (See Figure 79, p. 144, for details for both males and females.)

Table 40, p. 144, gives number and % of female and male employees reporting sexual and marital harassment by occupation.

(The figures for sexual harassment among male employees range from 4.5% for specialist professional men to 7% for men in wages 1 occupations.)

"In the case of female employees, there was much more variation [than among male employees] across occupational groups in relation to sexual and marital harassment. Women in trades, wages 1 and trainee occupations reported more sexual harassment than others. Those most likely to report marital harassment were in administrative, specialist professional and wages 1 occupations." [145]

"Across the Public Sector overall, 9.6% of women reported experiencing sexual harassment. […] sexual harassment of female staff was significantly greater in agencies with uniformed workforces and also in agencies with predominantly male workforces." [145]

"In authorities where 81.3% of the workforce was male, 13.4% of women reported experiencing sexual harassment, compared with 8.8% of women in departments where men comprised less than 50% of the workforce overall."

The report relates salary level to levels of sexual and marital harassment, pp. 146—147 (but my hands are getting tired of typing!). And finds a relationship for women between promotion experience and sexual harassment which is more pronounced than for men [148].

DETAILS OF THE 1985 QUESTIONNAIRE

On sexual and marital harassment, the 1990 questionnaire asked about the following situations. (These are similar to the 1985 questions, while the 1985 questionnaire also included questions about leering, touching and grabbing and pinching, etc. See below. And given the similarity, I’m not why the authors couldn’t have compared 1985 and 1990 responses to these particular questions, to get some sense of changes over time.)

-- People you work with displaying pictures of a sexual nature which you find offensive.

-- People you work with making repeated and unwelcome remarks, suggestions or jokes to you of a sexual/sexist nature.

-- People you work with making offensive remarks about married women in the workforce.

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On sexual and marital harassment, the 1985 questionnaire asked about the following situations.

1. -- People you work with displaying magazines or pictures of a sexual nature which you find offensive.

2. -- People you work with making repeated and unwelcome propositions, invitations or suggestions to you of a sexual nature.

3. -- People you work with making mocking or offensive remarks about married women in the workforce.

4. -- People you work with making repeated and unwelcome jokes or comments of a sexual nature.

5. -- People you work with whistling at you, leering at you or staring at your body.

6. -- People you work with touching, brushing against, grabbing or pinching you.

7. -- People you work with making sexual advances with the suggestion that if you accept, your opportunities at work will improve.

8. -- Other (please specify)__________________________________ [192]

REFERENCE: Anti-Discrimination Board of NSW 1996 Report of the Anti-Discrimination Board for the year ended 30 June 1996, Sydney: Parliament of NSW

In 1995/96 the Complaints Resolution Brance of the ADB received 1939 complaints. There was an increase of 33% in the number of complaints within the ADB’s jurisdiction which were received [19].

Sex and race discrimination complaints accounted for almost half of the 1939 complaints received. Sex discrimination (which includes discrimination on the basis of pregnancy and sexual harassment) was the main ground of complaint, representing 25% of complaints received in 1995/96 [19]. 416 complaints (415) were about work environment and harassment. Of those, 42% (176) concerned sexual harassment [20].

In 1995/96, men lodged 4% more complaints than women, and this is the first time in the Board’s history that this has happened. This figure is artificially inflated however as there were 192 complaints of age discrimination lodged by men against one employer. If that complaint is removed from the statistics, men lodged 44% of complaints with women lodging 51% [22]. (The remainder were lodged by organisations or by people whose sex was not known.)

Of a total of 484 complaints of sex discrimination, 87% were lodged by women and 13% by men. This proportion is similar to previous years [22].

The number of sexual harassment complaints rose marginally from 175 complaints in 1994/95 to 176 complaints in 1995/96. The year before there had been an increase of 88% in the numbers of sexual harassment complaints received. This number has clearly stabilised. The overwhelming number of complaints were employment related (87%) and were lodged by women (86% or 150 complaints). Men lodged 17 of the sexual harassment complaints received – the highest number we have ever received from men [22].

Note: Unfortunately, I have not yet seen HREOC Annual Reports for anything past 1991. AWIRS 1995 suggests looking at HREOC Annual Report 1995—96, p. 76 and 90.

1990—91: 803 complaints within jurisdiction were lodged under the Sex Discrimination Act (SDA), which represents a 35% increase over the previous year [84]. Of these, the largest proportion (36.3%) were lodged on the ground of sexual harassment in employment. A total of 90.6% of complaints received under the Act were lodged by women [85]. (For other details re. sex discrimination, see pp. 84—85.

1989—90: 593 new complaints were lodged, representing a 3% on the previous year. The largest proportion of complaints (35.2%) were lodged under the grounds of sex, while the next largest area involved complaints of sexual harassment in employment (23.8%) [82]. A total of 91% of complaints received were lodged by women [84].

The report also comments that: "young women are particularly vulnerable to sexual harassment in the workplace for a variety of reasons, including their age, inexperience and limited knowledge of their rights. The majority of complaints dealt with by the Commission alleging sexual harassment are typically from young women employed by small businesses. As such, they are vulnerable targets for this form of discriminatory behaviour." [89]

1988—89: 575 complaints were lodged. 79% of complaints were lodged on the grounds of sex and sexual harassment [26]. 150 of the 575 complaints were to do with sexual harassment, while another 24 were to do with both sex and sexual harassment [27, Table 6]. Women lodged 409 complaints while men lodged 52 complaints.

REFERENCE: Australian Bureau of Statistics 1996 Women’s safety Australia, Canberra: Australian Bureau of Statistics (No. 4128.0)

From section 7 on "General safety, stalking and harassment";

In the previous 12 month period, 15 percent of women received an obscene phone call, 5 percent experienced unwanted sexual touching. Young women were more likely to have experienced any of these types of harassment [63].

During their lifetime, nearly half of all women had received an obscene phone call and one-quarter had experienced unwanted sexual touching [63].

More details from Tables 7.14 and 7.15, p. 70;

Obscene phone calls: 47.9 percent had experienced … during their lifetime.

Indecent exposure by a man: 1.6 percent had experienced indecent exposure by a man in the last 12 months. Including 3.8 percent of women aged 18—24. 22.4 percent of women had experienced indecent exposure by a man during their lifetime.

Inappropriate comments about their body or sex life by a man: 32.5 percent had experienced … during their lifetime.

Unwanted sexual touching by a man: 25.8 percent had experienced … during their lifetime. 5.9 percent had… in the last 12 months. Including 13.4 percent of women aged 18—24.

REFERENCE: Collins, Cherry et.al 1996 Gender and school education, Canberra: Australian Council for Educational Research, June

Note: The following are notes and quotes from the sections of this study relating only to sex-based harassment.

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A study among 408 schools across Australia. Gathered quantitative data by sampling from 213 primary schools (4969 year 6 students) and 195 secondary schools (4855 year 10 students). Also surveyed teachers, system and sector authorities, and principals. Also conducted qualitative interviews with a smaller sub-sample.

Major findings, pp. x—xiv.

Summary re. sex-based harassment (also called sexual harassment), p. x.

"Boys are the usual perpetrators of sex-based harassment of their own and of the other sex, although some girls also harass both sexes." [x]

Also mentions physical bullying: reported as more common among boys than among girls.

Comment that sex-based harassment "seems to be part of a process of establishing dominance relations among males as well as of putting girls, as a group, ‘in their place’ in a gender system." [x]

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Questions on sex-based harassment: The students were asked to indicate whether a certain behaviour occurred Often, Sometimes or Never at their school. (See Appendix for questionnaire details.)

Verbal sex-based harassment

Verbal harassment is easily the most common form of sex-based harassment [23]. Some examples, p. 23.

Reports that "42 per cent of secondary males claimed that verbal sex-based harassment happened often to boys at their school, 38 per cent of secondary school girls claimed it happened often to girls, 36 per cent of primary boys claimed it happened often to boys at their school and 35 per cent of primary girls claimed that it happened often to girls at their school." [23]

The report notes the increase in particular from 36 to 42 percent for boys between the Year 6 and Year 10 samples. Also that secondary school boys are verbally harassed slightly but significantly more frequently than secondary school girls [23].

And the authors remark on the overall magnitude of the problem at both levels for both sexes [23].

Table showing more details, for different forms of sex-based harassment, p. 25.

"Homophobic verbal harassment is a major aspect of sex-based harassment at secondary level, particularly for boys, with 44 per cent of male respondents reporting that it happened often to males compared with only 19 per cent of female students reporting that it happened often to females." [26]

"[B]oth primary and secondary results suggest that the victims of spoken harassment are as likely to be boys as girls. Indeed, at secondary level, the situation for boys borders on significantly worse." [26] And this is corroborated by judgements by girls of boys and boys of girls.

Significant differences by State in the percentage of students reporting verbal sex-based harassment. More differences, p. 26.

Same-sex verbal put-downs: Collins et.al state that while verbal sex-based harassment by cliques is associated with girls, this behaviour was associated just with girls in this study. "Both sexes take part in ostracising behaviour, using verbal harassment, often sex-based, to expel individuals from the group and to keep outsiders out." [27] More details re. sex differences, p. 27.

Physical sex-based harassment

The questionnaires asked about embarassing touching or pinching, about flicking clothes up or pulling them down (‘dakking’), and about serious physical sex-based harassment/assault (the last only in the secondary school sample) [27]. Generally around 10 per cent of students claimed that physical harassment happened often at their schools.

"Experience of the more common forms of physical harassment runs fairly evenly across both primary and secondary schools, across both sexes, and across both kinds of harassment about which we asked – touching/pinching and uncovering." [27]

Found evidence that policy work on sex-based harassment can have real effects, p. 27.

Same-sex bullying/hurting: 30 per cent of boys at primary level perceived it to happen often, rising to 38 per cent at secondary level. While 18 and 19 per cent respectively for girls. Ie, show "same-sex bullying to be a serious problem and especially so for boys in secondary schools." [28]

Serious sexual harassment/assault: (Asked this only at secondary level.) Only low proportions of students claimed that it happened often: 4 per cent for assault of girls and a claimed (by boys) 8 per cent for assault of boys [28]. "Adding those who say it happened sometimes, we have a total of 26 per cent of female respondents saying that it has been known to happen in relation to girls at their school, and a total of 28 per cent of male respondents saying that it has been known to happen in relation to boys at their school." [28]

Who are the harassers?: "While some girls were involved in sex-based harassment of all kinds, our data suggests that those who harass both boys and girls are predominantly boys. This appears to be overwhelmingly true if the harassment is physical rather than verbal." [29]

This was the case at both primary and secondary school levels, "but both sexes are less discriminating about the sex of their victims. Boy to boy was reported at 11 per cent, boy to girl at 11 per cent, girl to boy at 4.2 per cent and girl to girl at 4 per cent." [29]

"The general and important point, that boys tended to be the aggressors at both primary and secondary school levels, victimising both girls and other members of their own sex, was confirmed in the student interviews and accords with other recent literature (Blackmore, 1995; Tulloch, 1995)." [29]

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Summary and conclusion

The executive summary includes a section on sex-based harassment. The following are some of the comments made here.

"Our data show verbal sex-based harassment to be commonplace […]. Both sexes were equally likely to be victims. Labelling boys gay, by various epithets, was a standard aspect of this sex-based name-calling with over 40 per cent of secondary boys reporting that it happened often at their school." [163]

"Physical bullying […] is part of the legendary culture of boys. The primary and secondary data support this reading to a large extent, with significantly more physical bullying among boys than girls at both levels, and more among Year 10 boys than among Year 6 boys. Some 92 per cent of Year 10 boys reported that bullying happened among boys at their school, nearly 40 per cent saying that it happened often." [163]

"Boys are significantly the most common perpetrators of harassment, both of girls and of their own sex."

"The results in this Study support these earlier findings about sex-based harassment of girls by boys. Such harassment is shown in our study to be frequent."

"This Study adds to the former evidence of harassment of women and girls, very strong evidence that harassment of boys happens just as frequently, and in some categories more frequently. The harassers of boys are largely other boys. Further, except in the case of a few girls (particularly at Year 6 level when girls are physically larger than boys), our qualitative data suggests that harassing behaviour by girls is often a way of taking part in a game against ‘outsiders’ controlled by dominant boys. Boys are usually the serious harassers of members of both sexes." [164]

"It is important also to understand how the intimidatory sex-based harassment of some boys by other boys acts to construct meanings for all those who know about it: those who are intimidated; other boys disciplined through witnessing what can happen to those who are targets; and for girl witnesses who are forming views about ‘real men’. […] More work on the whole pattern of childhood and youth sex-based harassment is a high priority, that in which boys are victims alongside that in which girls are victims." [164]

REFERENCE: Sadker, Myra and Sadker, David 1994 Failing at fairness: How America’s schools cheat girls, Charles Scribner’s Sons.

Cites a 1986 Minnesota survey of predominately white, middle-class juniors and seniors enrolled in a vocational scale, which found that 33 percent to 60 percent of the girls, but only one out of 130 male students, had experienced sexual harassment. [111] [Stein, Nan 1991 "It happens here, too: Sexual harassment in the schools", Education Week (November 27), p. 37.]

Further statistics and accounts of sexual harassment, pp. 111—

1993 national survey of middle and high school students, conducted by Louis Harris and Associates, published by the American Association of University Women and titled Hostile hallways. Found that, "Harassment is rampant in schools across America, with 81 percent of girls and 76 percent of boys reporting they have been subjected to some form of unwanted sexual behaviour. […] Sixty-five percent of girls and 42 percent of boys say they have been grabbed, touched or pinched in a sexual way." [111—112].

"While boys experience unwanted sexual behaviour, girls are far more likely to have been harassed repeatedly and at younger ages. […] Girls are also far more likely than boys to report feeling embarassed or upset, self-conscious and scared as a result of the experience. Thirty-three percent of girls and 12 percent of boys were so troubled after being harassed sexually they did not want to talk in class or even go to school." [112]

REFERENCE: The girls report: What we know and need to know about growing up female, New York: National Council for Research on Women (NCRW)

Brought to you by the Family Violence Prevention Fund (fund@fvpf.org)

Posted 7-1-98

Recent research suggests that adolescent girls and young women who have been battered, raped, or harassed tend to refuse to label their own experiences as victimization, abuse, or rape. Adolescent girls are disproportionately the reported victims of rape, and the vast majority of these rapes are perpetrated by family members, friends or acquaintances. Those are among the findings in "The Girls Report - What We Know and Need to Know About Growing Up Female," a study commissioned by the National Council for Research on Women (NCRW).

"The Girls Report" examines trends in health, sexuality, violence and victimization, schooling, and economic conditions. The mixed picture that emerges shows that, while most girls are competent and resilient, they confront numerous social and economic barriers and often are denied opportunities to fulfill their potential, the report says.

"Despite some progress, in many areas girls remain victimized, harassed, and diminished and face very real risks that threaten their healthy development," said NCRW Executive Director Linda Basch. "While ‘The Girls Report’ identifies programs that have greatly benefited teenage girls and highlights girls’ achievements, it also delineates the underbelly of girls’ experiences."

"The Girls Report" was written by Lynn Phillips, a professor at The New School for Social Research, in New York City. Phillips reviewed and synthesized findings from more than 200 studies, most conducted within the past five years, and drew upon interviews with prominent researchers and statements by individual girls from a wide variety of backgrounds and social groups.Findings

While many girls endure sexual violence, battering, and harassment, violence against women is typically cast as a problem facing adults, the report notes. And although three out of four child victims/survivors of violence are girls, violence against children is typically cast in gender-neutral terms. Other key findings from "The Girls Report" include

* A disproportionate percentage of reported rape victims are adolescent girls. In 1992, 62 percent of all reported forcible rape cases involved victims/survivors who were younger than 17.

* Despite a rise in reports of peer-to-peer sexual harassment, few cases are filed and even fewer pursued. Harassment often occurs openly in schools, in front of adults and other students.

* High school girls who say they have experienced sexual or physical abuse are more likely to report smoking, drinking, and using illegal drugs.

Recommendations

Based on these findings, the report suggests several actions. These include

* Attention to Youth The anti-rape and battered women’s movements must continue to highlight the prevalence of violence against girls.

* Adult Support Adults must take a more active role in helping girls who experience sexual, emotional, and physical violence.

* Encouragement of Girls’ Entitlement Girls should develop a healthy sense of entitlement and be taught how to refuse unwanted touching and sexual contact.

* Institutional Support Schools must take far greater responsibility in ensuring that harassment of students is not tolerated. They should have clear harassment policies that stress prevention and are consistently enforced.

* Judicial Reform Researchers and policy makers should pay more attention to girls’ experiences as both victims and perpetrators of violence, and increase prevention and early intervention efforts.

* More Research More research is needed on teen domestic violence, girls’ responses to violent crime, and the perspectives of girls who perpetrate violence. Researchers should also work with boys and men to learn how they relate to girls and women.

The National Council for Research on Women is an alliance of 77 university-based research centers, national policy organizations, and educational coalitions. "The Girls Report" is the second by NCRW on adolescent girls in this decade. It updates and expands upon the findings of "Risk, Resiliency, and Resistance Current Research on Adolescent Girls," which was released in 1991.

Copies of "The Girls Report" are available for $20.00 plus $3.50 for postage and handling from NCRW, Publications Department GR1, 11 Hanover Square, 20th Floor, New York, NY 10005. All orders must be prepaid. For Visa, MasterCard, and American Express orders, call NCRW at 212/785-7335 or fax credit card information to 212/785-7350.

REFERENCE: Louis Harris and Associates 1993 Hostile hallways: The AAUW survey on sexual harassment in America's schools, American Association of University Women, June

Kindergarten through 12th Grade

Most of the literature on sexual harassment focuses on peer-to-peer harassment, possibly because there is so much of it. Sexual harassment by peers is pervasive in schools. AAUW's survey, "Hostile Hallways," found that 85 percent of girls and 76 percent of boys experience sexual harassment during their school years. The harassment happens in the hallway (66%), in a classroom (50%), on the school grounds (43%), in the cafeteria (34%), on the school bus (26%), in the parking lot, (23%), and in the locker rooms (19%).

Nearly one in three girls reported that these were unwanted sexual advances, as compared to one in five boys. The problem, researchers concluded, was a "climate of tolerance" for sexual harassment in schools. Sexual harassment is often treated as "typical adolescent behavior" in schools and considered as a "rite of passage" for teenagers.

In the AAUW study, students gave the following excuses for engaging in sexual harassment:

It's just a part of school life/ A lot of people do it/ It's no big deal ................42%

I thought the person liked it..............................27%

I wanted a date with the person.........................24%

My friends encouraged me/My friends pushed me into doing it............18%

I wanted something from that person.................... 20%

I wanted the person to think I had some sort of power over them............ 7%

When sexual harassment is tolerated or treated as "natural" or "normal," children, especially girls, learn that they are not worthy of respect. Boys learn that they are allowed, even encouraged, to exert power over girls and to keep them in their place through harassment.

Students are also harassed by adults in school, although the rates of adult-to-student harassment are lower. One quarter of the girls in the study reported being harassed by a school employee, while only 10 percent of boys reported such harassment.

Children who were harassed most often told a friend (62%) or a parent or family member (23). Children who were harassed in school were highly unlikely to tell a teacher; only 7 percent of students in the AAUW study reported they had told a teacher about the harassment. Nearly one quarter (23%) of children harassed in school reported that they told no one.

[Additional information from Hostile hallways]

1,632 polled in grades 8 through 11
85% of girls have been harassed
76% of boys have been targets

Girls were five times more likely to find the incidents disturbing and three times more likely to feel the harassment had affected their grades.

In addition, the survey discovered:

25% of girls harassed by school employees
10% of boys harassed by school employees

They also found that African American girls were four times more likely to be harassed by adults at school than white or Latina girls.

The military and defence forces

See the following:

[http://www.de.psu.edu/harass/analysis/extent.htm]

Information for this section was drawn largely from " Sexual Harassment: Building a Consensus for Change," The Governor's Task Force on Sexual Harassment, Final Report Submitted to Governor Mario M. Cuomo in December 1993.

It is difficult to document the extent of sexual harassment. Many studies indicate that sexual harassment is widespread and that it takes a serious toll on women's lives and careers. On the other hand, critics point out that many studies elicit responses only from those persons who have experienced sexual harassment and that such incidence rates may be inflated. For example, if a magazine asks readers to return a questionnaire, it is unlikely that women who have not been sexually harassed will take the time to return the questionnaire.

Other critics counter that rates of sexual harassment may actually be underreported, because many women are conditioned to accept harassing behavior as joking or compliments, and they don't report it either in questionnaires or at work. Increasingly, however, women are recognizing harassment as illegal, reporting it and seeking remedies. Finally, men as well as women are coming to agree on the definition of harassment, a fact which is encouraging.

Even taking into account the methodological concerns described above, the surveys and other studies leave no doubt that sexual harassment is a widespread and continuing problem in workplaces and schools. It transcends occupational and professional categories, age groups, educational backgrounds, racial and ethnic groups, and income levels and affects us all.

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In a newsletter called "The Letter of the Law," Collier & Associates law firm in Dallas Texas report that sexual harassment claims increased 200% in 1995 and judgments - excluding attorney's fees - averaged $200,000. It has been estimated that 90% of all sexual harassment claims are bona fide.

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