Sexual harassment still a matter of concern

Pink Ladder- India's first comprehensive career enhancement ecosystem for women professionals through its International Alliance for Gender Studies released the findings of "Reach and Impact of sexual harassment policies in India". This research was carried out across 200 women from 80 organizations across Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai & Delhi.

Some of the key findings include:

56% women believe sexual harassment at the workplace has increased over the years

53% women have been subject to sexual comments, gestures, jokes at the workplace

Close to 80% women are aware of policies against sexual harassment at the workplace

Close to 30% women still hesitate to complain to the internal committee about the incident of sexual harassment

53% women would not or are not sure about continuing to work in the same place where the incident of sexual harassment case occurred

Over 65% women believe sensitization workshops in companies can ensure that colleagues are fair and supportive to the victim during an incident of sexual harassment

43% women have come across an incident of sexual harassment in their teams or companies recently

Close to 50% women felt the companies did not follow the right procedure to address the complaint

Over 45% women believe their company's internal complaints committee is not fully aware of POSH policies and guidelines

"There is a need for companies to increase awareness around sexual harassment by defining the conducts that define harassment through periodic sensitization workshops, forums, talks and discussions. First step towards this is to understand the reach and impact of current policies and that's what we have aimed to achieve through this study." said Soujanya Vishwanath- Co-Founder, Pink Ladder.

The report was released around a panel discussion titled "The Real Change: Reach and impact of sexual harassment policies in India". The panel discussion included high profile speakers such as Madhumitha Venkataraman - D&I India head for a leading global beverage company, Priya Mathilakath- Head of HR for Titan, Bhumika Reddy- POSH legal expert and was moderated by Priya Cherry Rajagopal- reputed social activist and Executive Search Consultant. The event was attended by HR, Diversity & Inclusion and POSH committee members from leading companies across Bangalore like Novo Nordisk, Accenture, MS Ramaiah Hospital among others.

"Though illegal in many countries around the globe, sexual harassment (SH) continues to negatively impact people's lives at work. Despite almost four decades of legal, policy, and organizational efforts, SH damages careers, perpetuates inequity and hurts both individuals and organizations. Research suggests that commonly used approaches to preventing and addressing SH just don't work very well.

Leaders in impacted organizations need a new approach." said Prof Robyn Catagnus, Chicago School of Psychology and International Alliance for Gender Studies Member who has contributed an interesting perspective around this topic in this report.

"We at Pink Ladder believe real impact to gender equality can be achieved only when workplaces are made safer for all women employees. Best practices and insights from global thought leaders need to be presented to Indian companies. We are planning many more such interesting research in the coming months" said Dr. Karthik Nagendra, Co-Founder, Pink Ladder.