Research and Analysis

Enough is Enough: Tackling Workplace Sexual Harassment In Scotland

Apr 20, 2022: Engender's new report Enough is Enough: Tackling Workplace Sexual Harassment in Scotland sets out the extent and nature of sexual and sexist workplace harassment and the impact it has on women in Scotland and highlights the need to reframe this as an issue of women’s equality that is rooted in sexism and sits within the spectrum of violence against women and girls. The report makes recommendations for action on sexual and sexist harassment in the workplace for Scottish Government and other bodies covering: prevention, reporting, investigation and decision-making, employment tribunals, and regulating sexual harassment.

This report is the result of a 2-year project which included convening an expert group of academics, lawyers, violence against women practitioners and employment law specialists, as well as conducting research and focus groups with women who have experienced sexual and sexist harassment. This work is part of a wider project in Scotland with Close the Gap who are doing related but separate work to build capacity in employers. The work was funded by Rosa, the UK fund for women and girls, as part of a four-nations project on sexual harassment.

Anonymous Reporting of Sexual Harassment: A Literature Review

Apr 20, 2022: This report provides a literature review relating to the use of anonymous reporting of sexual harassment within the UK. The focus is on workplaces but, where appropriate, other settings such as the university sector in its role as an education provider, are also considered. Although the review is primarily concerned with developments within the UK, the practice of anonymous reporting is relatively new and so other countries’ experiences are also reviewed in order to explore what we can learn in terms of good and best practice. The materials on which this review is based were widely drawn from a range of sources including academic research, organisational and grey literature drawing on both online and print resources.

Date of publication: April 2022.

Engender and Close the Gap Joint briefing on the impact of Covid-19 on young women

Nov 12, 2021: This briefing looks at the impacts of Covid-19 on young women’s employment, financial security, and mental health in Scotland. It uses data from a joint survey on young women developed by Close the Gap, Engender, the UK Women’s Budget Group, Fawcett Society, Women’s Equality Network Wales, and Northern Ireland Women’s Budget Group.

This paper analyses survey data gathered from 501 young people aged 18 to 30 in Scotland and a booster sample of 266 Black and minority ethnic (BME) young people. Key findings reinforce evidence, gathered over the course of the pandemic, that young women have been particularly affected by rising financial precarity and anxiety as a result of the ongoing crisis. The findings also align with evidence from previous crises which indicates that economic downturns tend to have particularly detrimental effects on younger workers.

Date of publication: November 2021

Engender and Close the Gap Joint briefing on the impact of COVID-19 on women with childcare responsibilities in Scotland

Mar 17, 2021: This briefing looks at the implications of the COVID-19 crisis on women with childcare responsibilities in Scotland specifically by analysing survey data gathered from 721 parents in Scotland. The survey data reinforces pre-existing evidence that women’s employment has been disproportionately impacted by additional caring responsibilities over the course of the crisis, and women have been particularly affected by rising financial precarity and anxiety as a result of the social and economic consequences of the crisis. The data also highlights that Black and minority ethnic (BME) women and disabled women have been particularly impacted by the social, economic, and labour market implications of the pandemic.

Date of publication: March 2021.

Engender Parliamentary Briefing: Increasing Opportunities for Women Debate 2014

Aug 20, 2014: A briefing paper for MSPs in advance of the Scottish Government debate on increasing opportunities for women in the Scottish Parliament on 20 August 2014.

Date of publication: August 2014.

Scotland’s Futures: Women and the Labour Market

Jul 24, 2014: This briefing is part of a series that sets out how power and responsibility to tackle critical gender equality issues are divided between Holyrood and Westminster. It is part of Engender’s contribution to the independence referendum debate.

Date of publication: July 2014.