Research and Analysis

Model Sexual Harassment Prevention and Action Policy

Sep 20, 2022: This model Sexual Harassment Prevention and Action Policy has been produced for Engender by Professor Nicole Busby and Professor Rosalind Searle with support from colleagues in employment law.

This model policy is available for workplaces to use, adapt and adopt to suit the needs of their employees and work environments. We would encourage engagement with trades unions or, failing that, staff associations or representatives who are experts in their professional field in developing and adopting this policy to ensure that specific considerations relating to individual workplaces and particular sectors are taken into account. All workplaces and employers are welcome to use this model policy, and there is no need to credit Engender or the authors.

This model policy is an appendix to the report Enough is Enough: Tackling Workplace Sexual Harassment in Scotland.

Date of Publication: April 2022

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.